The Mundane Interview of a Most Unusual Girl
by idreamedofstardust
Summary: Did you know there was a woman responsible for stopping the apocalypse of 09? I mean, yes, Sam and Dean did hold it off, but this woman helped settle the mother of all sibling rivalries. Too bad it was done at the expense of her own freedom. Seriously, who kidnaps women anyway? Apparently, angels do.
1. Chapter 1

**VERY IMPORTANT YOU READ THIS: this story is not meant to be taken seriously. It is stretching what's acceptable to write as fanfiction in an absolutely ridiculous way, even bordering on somewhat cracky. I KNOW this could never happen, I HOPE this never happens, and it WOULD be ridiculous if this ever happened. Quite literally, I've written an unrealistic story that's sole purpose, other than being amusing, is to help me work through the crushes I have on some characters from this show. I repeat, I UNDERSTAND THIS ISN'T REALISTIC, THIS IS FANFICTION, AND I'VE UTILIZED MY IMAGINATION TO THE GREATEST DEGREE HERE. Otherwise, I hope you get a crack out of this story. It's meant to be funny with the slightest bit of romance. And despite it's lack of realism, I will try to keep those from the show marginally in character. There will obviously be events I've changed for the purpose of this story! Also, it may start out a bit confusing at first because you'll be introduced to characters you don't know, but stick with it and you'll understand what's going on fairly quick. Enjoy!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 1 - The Search for the Most Interesting Creature in Existence or Bloody Hell, No One Gets Along<br>**

"Gentlemen, ladies, witches, warlocks, demons, spirits, and those in between, I'd like to thank you for-."

"Will there be refreshments?"

Everyone's heads snapped to the spirit of Vincent Price who was casually reclining in his wooden chair with a mysterious smile as one finger traced his thin, black mustache.

"You're dead," a female demon spat scathingly. "You don't need to eat."

"That does not mean I am not hungry. Alexander promised refreshments."

"Actually," inserted a witch with round, wiry spectacles, "I only came to this meeting for the refreshments as well."

"Free loaders," the demon muttered.

"Calm yourself, Vera," the male demon to her right - Kobal - soothed. "Being rude solves little. Try approaching your irritation from a more positive angle."

Vera hissed malignantly at his condescending tone, earning an appreciative glance from the sole warlock at the table, Andre. Who just happened to have a thing for assertive females.

"I feel a lot of us would benefit from vodka right about now," Mia suggested shyly, sensing the tension in the room.

"Shut up, you human vermin."

"Vera," Kobal warned again, though not without mockery in his voice.

"I wouldn't mind vodka," Brock admitted, meeting Mia's eyes. "Don't worry, I got your back, pretty lady."

"Christ," Vera and Kobal muttered unanimously.

"What's wrong with a little love connection?" the bespectacled witch - Audrey - inquired. "I personally think it's romantic."

"If you're inclined to commit suicide, then I'm sure seeing the two little humans flirt is just up your alley."

"I'm not flirting back!" Mia insisted, peering at Vera. "And I don't even find him that attractive."

"But you do a little bit," she sneered. "That's all it takes. Settling down, popping out a few beasts, and retiring in some beach house in Florida. You ever wonder why we like to possess you? It's because you're boring little fuckers who wouldn't know excitement if it bit you on the snatch."

Vincent lost it at this, stifling his giggles behind a pale hand. Women certainly didn't talk so freely in his days.

Kobal saw the combative glint in Vera's eye and wisely stayed silent.

"Baby, you can possess me any day of the week and I can show you just how exciting it is to be in control of this motor boat. Keep all hands and feet inside for the remainder of this ride, please. You must be this hot to enter," Brock offered suavely, throwing the demon a flirtatious wink.

"By the balls of Gandhi himself," Kobal groaned with a shake of the head, studying his nails. "This isn't going to end well."

"I'll rip your spine out of your ass," came Vera's murderous response.

"This is no longer romantic."

With that, Audrey conjured herself the latest edition of Wicca-Cosmo, ignoring the battle of intense glaring going down at the table. Supposedly, there was a fascinating article on how to stimulate the male organ of your lover from halfway around the world. Oh, Sergio would love the unexpected surprise!

"Are you single?"

"Eat me," Vera growled at Andre.

"I'm talented at oral-."

"She meant it sarcastically, young wizard. Plus, it's doubtful you could handle her," Kobal patiently noted.

"Yep, definitely need that vodka," Mia murmured, trying to bury herself into the chair.

"Demons are notoriously ill tempered," Vincent offered helpfully from her left, "don't take it personally if they don't like you."

"I'm not even supposed to be here," she whispered back with a tired shake of the head. "I'm only the PA. Why'd Alfred have to get married anyway? All he did was complain about women anyway."

"Perhaps-."

"SILENCE!"

The six occupants of the table paused their bickering, slowly allowing the leader of the meeting to have a voice once more.

"Can't we get through one meeting without everyone trying to provoke each other?" Alexander questioned feebly.

"If I may, Alex," Vincent motioned politely, "this is the first meeting where you've congregated such a vast variety of creatures and species into one room. On normal circumstances, we occupy our separate floors of this studio. Undoubtedly, opinions and lifestyles will clash when brought together."

"I chose you six specifically for many reasons, the most important one being that you are more tolerant of each other than your kind permit. Was I wrong in my assumption?"

There was an awkward silence for a minute. No one wanted to be the first to admit they were acting like a royal butthead.

"I am here because I respect you, Alexander," Vera stated regally. "And because I believe in this preposterous dream you have. Anyone else in this room is nothing but mere dirt to me."

Andre's shoulders visibly slumped.

"Vera has also grown bored with the common activity our kind engage in," Kobal added. "What you are attempting to usher in, fascinates not only her, but myself as well. Though, I like to think I'm a bit more progressive than the average demon. By the way, it's an honor to meet you, Mr. Price. _House of Wax_ is a particular favorite."

"A demon with a queer taste in films? Oh, my heart would beat enthusiastically, were it not already dead and shriveled," Vincent sighed, throwing the demon a wink. "I too respect you, Alex, dear. Your determination is what ultimately caught my interest. As you know, I long ago made the decision to stay on Earth as a spirit. I thought it majestic and peculiar. A lifetime of simple observation. But, as of late, I've grown restless. I seek to do something eventful with my afterlife. Though fonder of humanity, I hold no prejudice against any of you. And Vera, my sweet, I find you utterly fascinating. The human vessel you possess...you waited until the human inside was nearly dead from disease before taking vacancy. However malevolent you wish to come off, understand you have my appreciation."

"Were you still alive, I would extirpate your organs," she growled.

"She's touched," Kabol translated, grinning when Vera struck him.

"I love movies and TV shows more than the average witch," Audrey blurted, green eyes sparkling. "And the older generation of my kind thinks I'm just into being hedonistic. My coven even kicked me out because I kept missing Thursday night spell sessions for Grey's Anatomy. Entertainment is important to me, and I think it is to a lot more supernatural beings than we're aware of. I'd like to help you spread that entertainment."

"You a McDreamy or McSteamy fan?" Brock questioned slyly.

"That's not even a competition. McDreamy! I had a huge Patrick Dempsey fetish for a long time!"

Brock grinned knowingly at this, though how he would know anything about that, is a question best left unanswered.

"I think it's awesome, personally, that there's finally going to be a channel for all the supernatural folk," he drawled happily. "That's cool of you, Alex. Guessing I'm here 'cause you need my expertise? That's rad too. And I don't mind any of you so long as you try to stop with all the hate. Man, I swear, reading the newspaper is like war for my eyes."

"I think we all know who's responsible for that misery."

Vera evened out her features when Brock's expression turned somber.

"Sister, you know all that trouble ain't all us. You guys just hide your misdeeds better."

Kobal and Vera half-shrugged at this, knowing he wasn't completely wrong.

"You and I've been friends for awhile, Alex, and this...it's about the craziest idea you've ever had," Andre acknowledged, offering him a grin. "But if there's anyone who can reach the masses, it's you. I don't like fighting. I try to avoid using magic as much as I can. And I like your idea because maybe, people who are fed up with all the struggle for power, wouldn't mind tuning out to a little entertainment once in awhile. Also, I got kicked off the Bachelorette for masturbating in the hot tub."

The laugh Vera expelled was sinister.

"What's a 'Bachelorette'?" Vincent queried.

"Twenty-five manwhores try to seduce an insecure hussy who'll always be known as second best," Kabol explained pleasantly.

"They ain't all man-whores," Brock defended.

Audrey let out a derisive snort. "Sweetheart, how many of the relationships actually last?"

"If I was on that show-."

"The Bachelorette would hang herself during your date," Vera finished.

"Is suicide a common occurrence on this show?" Vincent voiced in concern.

"Little lady, I don't know what you got against good looking men from Texas-."

"Oh, that explains so much! Brawl, ego, and ignorance."

"Texas isn't that bad," Andre defended.

"George W. Bush," Audrey reminded pointedly.

"Most of the time, it isn't that bad," the warlock remedied.

"GUYS! Really? Arguing about 'the Bachelorette'?" Mia interrupted, finding her voice. "Alex brought us together for a reason. Arguing isn't why."

"You serve no real importance," Vera brushed off. "Is Alfred not supposed to be here? I find I tolerate him much more than his little rube."

Mia stared at the demon, slightly perplexed. "Uh...rube?"

"Outdated insult," Kabol commented. "She believes you to be a stupid, ignorant hick."

"Lady...or whatever you are, you have got to update your vocabulary. We're obviously going to be working on something big, so either suck it up, or get the hell out. Were Alfred here, he'd tell you the same thing."

"You dare tell me what to do?"

"Vera," Alex intercepted, looking at her wearily, "please, if it's too much trouble getting along with everyone else, you don't have to be a part of this project. I won't think any differently of you."

The demon grumbled in a not quite human language, but stayed seated.

"I wasn't clear on the refreshment situation. Were there going to be any?" Vincent inquired politely.

Alex contained the urge to roll his eyes, instead, snapping his fingers.

Instantly, an assortment of muffins, champagne, gin, and shrimp appeared.

"Is the theme of the refreshments foods from Vincent's time period?" Andre joked, plucking a shrimp off the tray.

"I've found in my experiences that very few people complain when champagne and shrimp are involved. I met the most interesting woman in the spring of 65' over a lovely glass of-."

"Vincent, if I may."

"Yes, my sincerest apologies. Do go on."

"Thank you." Alex nodded graciously. "I understand this is unusual for you all. To be assembled this way. Usually, this studio segregates creatures and beings from each other as a means of keeping the peace. Even when forced to interact, the quarreling is kept to a minimum. A few snarls here and there, one near possession-."

"Terribly sorry about that," Vincent inserted quickly. "Diana was unusually curious as to what would happen should she attempt to occupy the same vessel a demon."

"Ugh, I remember that," Audrey shivered. "They had to exorcise that demon back to hell, it was so pissed."

"Rightly so," Vera added. "Tell that wretched body thief that there's a significant risk of her being caught and tortured, should she cross my path."

"Spirits are dead as it is," Mia stated slowly. "How could it get any worse?"

"Salted and burned repeatedly," Kabol mentioned. "Done enough and it'll make the spirit wish it'd said yes to its reaper."

"I hope to avoid a disaster of that proportion," Alex declared, looking at each and every one of them. "The reason for this coming together is positive. Those who have been at this studio for the past two years are aware of my purpose for it. To eventually broadcast on cable the very first entertainment channel for the supernatural community, only able to be accessed through a special code."

The six of them nodded simultaneously at this.

"Though the past two years have been rocky and we've seen a heated struggle to accept this studio's proposal, ultimately, we've prevailed to the point where a fair majority of our community has paid for the access code."

Alex paused, a slow smile spreading across his lips. "My fellow friends, in one week, I am proud to announce that we will be watching the first aired show on our channel for the supernatural, SPN."

No one had been aware of this information up to this point, so, understandably, they all had their own reaction.

Mia and Andre gasped.

Vera lifted an eyebrow - a gesture of _overwhelming_ surprise on her part.

Kobal merely smirked, nodding his head contentedly.

Brock did a mini-fist pump and nearly choked on his shrimp tail in the process, causing Vera to smile blithingly.

Vincent clapped one hand to his mouth, eyes shining warmly.

Audrey only stared at Alex in shock.

"Is this really happening?" she pestered, lips parted. "I mean...we went through so much negativity. Everyone was worried about being exposed. A lot of demons wanted to kill you because you had humans employed here."

"It's a technological age. And after the near apocalypse two years ago, some aren't so willing to pick fights anymore. They're willing to give this form of entertainment a shot. Which is why this time next week will be so crucial. I've decided the first broadcast for SPN will be a live interview. Something easy to start off with, yet equally riveting. Unfortunately, I'm clueless as to who my guest should be. This is why you six are here. You are all from different backgrounds. Different networks. Your goal is to find the first interviewee. It matters not what species or gender or age. My only request is that this person is so _fucking_ intriguing that turning the channel doesn't even cross the viewer's mind"

"Alex, you've swore. I've never heard you swear before," Vincent observed.

Alex released a mirthful laugh, clapping his hands. "I apologize. My excitement seems to be getting the better of me. This day...I did not think I'd ever see it come. Our very own television channel!"

For the first time all evening, a sort of serene mood settled upon the occupants of the room. Granted, they still had their misgivings with others (cough, cough, Vera vs. everyone, cough, cough), but it wasn't urgent enough to overpower the revived sense of purpose. Entertainment for the supernatural was going mainstream.

And _no one_ wanted to fuck this up.

****Five Days Later****

"Vampires are booooring," Audrey whined. "Plus, Ivan hid during some of the most important events in history."

"I don't understand why you are all negating my idea," Vera protested angrily. "I've all but secured War himself! A damned horsemen! The stories he has to share are..._engrossing_."

"I admire the idea, Vera, but I want to have a guest a bit more...level minded," Alex reasoned. "War, while undoubtedly fascinating, has the habit of getting...gruesome and violent."

"Of course he does! That's the point!"

"Not all of our audience wants gore and murder," Andre spoke up, decidedly feeling no longer infatuated with the demoness. "We need someone more impartial. What about a skinwalker?"

"Don't make me laugh," she snarked. "When they aren't being cocky fucks, they blabber on about the physical discrimination they've suffered. Unless we have one boiled alive on air, our audience will be stifling snores."

"I can get in contact with the witch who accidentally started the London fire of 1666," Audrey offered. "And the Chicago fire in 1871. She was a bit...clumsy."

"Wasn't she blinded in 1404?" Andre recalled.

"Yeah...maybe not a good idea."

"Y'all can try Atropos. That smokin' Fate with the nice rack. Ran into her while I was vacationing in Greece. She had a day off. The stories she can tell," Brock whistled.

"You've met Atropos?"

This was the first time Vera didn't direct pure anger at him. Merely slight surprise.

"Yep. It was a beach bar. She was going on about her sisters and some stuff 'bout the apocalypse. We went back to my room sometime in between the seventh and eighth margarita."

"Margarita? Oh, aren't you a masculine man?" Vera scoffed.

"Baby, I'll have whatever she's having so long as she's having me at the end of the night, y'a dig?"

Vincent studied Brock with deep interest.

"Your lingo continues to elude me, but I am under the impression that you value the passion of a woman."

"Damn straight.

"How quaint. To make love to Fate herself. I am tempted to inquire-."

"Don't," Audrey inserted. "I really don't need to know."

Vera and Mia nodded their affirmations.

"Mia, do you have an idea?" Alex asked.

"Well, since Alfred isn't back yet from vacation, I've been thinking about what the interview should be about. What could be such an interesting topic that everyone will want to tune in to hear, no matter their species."

"Have you considered an idea?"

Mia shook her head. "Not yet. Every time I do, the individual isn't mysterious enough. Everyone seems to know a little bit about everyone. I'll keep working, though."

"Where is Kolab? I miss his presence," Vincent admitted whimsically, glancing at the empty chair.

"He'll be late," Vera mentioned off-handedly, rubbing at her temples.

"Well, since no one has considered the idea, may I ask your thoughts on having the lovely Cleopatra be interviewed?"

Everyone's eyes shot to Vincent.

"As in-?"

"Yes. She's an exquisite character. I only warn that you do not bring up Miss Elizabeth Taylor's portrayal of her in the film. She is not as...taken with it as the world is."

"It's a great idea, Vincent," Alex supported. "My only hesitance would be how far of an audience she could reach. Her role in history is one of human significance. I can't be sure the demon community or the vampire community would take to her experiences."

"Just an offer," he shrugged good-nautredly.

"This is harder than I thought it'd be," Mia murmured.

Vera was ready to reintroduce her idea of interviewing War when unexpectedly, there was a knock on the conference room door.

"Come in," Alex called.

To everyone's surprise, Kolab entered, but he wasn't alone.

"Ugh, another human? Just what we need," Vera scowled, glaring dismissively at their new guest. "Aren't the clueless rube and idiotic Texan, enough?"

"Alexander, hello," Kolab greeted, allowing the newcomer to step into the room.

Once inside, the demon closed the door.

"I'm sorry, I don't believe I've met your friend. I haven't seen her in my studio before."

"No caution is necessary," he assured, picking up on his hesitance. "Nikki is just as aware of the supernatural community, if not more, considering her experiences."

This eased Alexander down considerably. He observed the girl with a kinder expression.

"I am Alexander Cyrus Katsaros. Alex, for short. If Kolab hasn't already informed you, I own this studio."

Nikki's eyes landed on Alex and she returned his kind smile.

"I have told her the purpose of this studio," the demon announced. "She's fascinated by the idea."

"It's unique," Nikki elaborated, eyeing her surroundings with intrigue. "My name is Nicole. I'm...a human? Sorry, I don't know how I should introduce myself to you...all."

Uncertainly, she raised her hand and offered them a wave with an anxious, yet sturdy grin.

"What is she doing here?" Vera cut in, watching her dirtily. "We're busy."

"I know," Kolab defended, turning to Nikki. "So, without further ado, I present to you our first interviewee."

"You have got to be kidding me."

"I too am skeptical," Alex pitched in cautiously. "Not that Nicole doesn't have her attributes, I'm sure, but she is human. I had hoped to keep away from the race because of the general animosity aimed towards them and lack of lifetime experience. Their lives tend to be quite...expendable."

Kolab's lips erupted into a strange smile as he returned his gaze to Nikki.

"Nikki's life, the past two years in particular, are unbelievably gripping. For example, are you aware that she is the reason the apocalypse never took place?"

"By the Bogarts, is that true?" Vincent inquired, studying Nikki with a renewed interest.

"Bullshit," Vera denied.

"Unfortunately, I second that," Audrey followed up. "Besides, I heard something about two brothers...hunters, I think...who stopped it."

"They held it off," Kobal confirmed. "But, without Nikki, Lucifer and Michael would have destroyed each other as well as this world. Aren't you at all curious as to what Nikki did to settle their feud?"

Being the recipient of intense staring didn't faze Nikki anymore.

"Maybe I'm not what you're looking for...," she trailed off.

"Nonsense. I hardly realized two hours had gone by once you finally finished your story. She not only caught my interest, but kept it."

"You're unnaturally interested in abominations," Vera accused.

"And this is the most wondrous, special abomination I've ever come across."

"How'd you stop the apocalypse?" Mia interjected.

Nikki inhaled carefully before grabbing the collar of her white t-shirt. Steadily, she pulled it away from her neck, past her collarbone, to just above the swell of her breast.

Audrey automatically shot up to her feet and approached Nikki, eyes wide.

"Oh My Isis," she marveled softly, pausing before the human girl, one hand hovering over the glowing, bright blue sigil. "Is...that what I think it is?"

"Um, yeah," Nikki mumbled, glancing down at it as her cheeks grew red. "I normally hate showing it. Sort of makes me feel like I'm their property, you know?"

_"What_ is it?" Brock asked, meandering his way next to Audrey.

Quite soon, everyone gathered before Nikki, eyes washing over the odd engraving. For the symbol was quite literally etched into her skin. Rather than reflecting a sore red, however, it glowed blue.

"That's an Enochian sigil," Audrey revealed, shaking her head in awe. "Not just an ordinary one, though. It's got the markings of a soul bond. Quite literally, these curves indicate Nicole's soul linking to that of an angel's grace. That, on it's own, is rare enough. I heard stories about this, but never believed it. Humans born with these sigils only came along once in a great while and were seldom actually found by the angels they were linked to. There wasn't exactly a map or internal compass to lead them to each other. Which is unfortunate because those born with the sigils were usually a gift to angels from God. The human was said to be imperfect in the eyes of man, but sublime to the grace intertwined with her soul. Literally, the angel's soul mate."

"God doesn't ask you, by the way," Nikki inserted with a weak laugh, "whether you're cool with this. Just...sorta does it."

"The sigil would be with them upon birth, usually pale against their skin tone," Audrey recollected, tilting her head. "It doesn't glow blue unless the angel finds the human and inserts part of their own grace into the sigil."

Vera didn't look impressed.

"So, a freak with wings found a human abomination and marked her like a slice of meat. What's the big deal?"

Audrey glanced between Nikki and Kolab, mouth caught in between opening and shutting.

"It's a big deal because...," gently, she traced her index finger over the intricate markings, "the sigil is glowing much brighter than it's supposed to be, showing that more than one grace has blessed this sigil. And these curves...it's not indicating just one angel linked to Nicole's soul. It's indicating..._five_."

The silence was deafening.

Well, that is until Vera broke it.

"She's got five angels getting their wings in a twist for her? I still don't see what the big deal is."

But, her face didn't reflect this. In fact, her eyes never once left the sigil. She may not have known Enochian markings that well, but this...this was unheard of and one hundred and twenty shades of fucking weird.

"That's _three_ archangels and two angels," Kolab corrected, patting Nikki comfortingly on the back. "One of which is responsible for our existence."

Vera was finally stunned speechless.

"Now," Kolab redirected, facing Alex's astonished face, "anymore questions? Or did you want to try to find someone just a little more interesting?"

Alex unexpectedly grabbed Nikki around the waist and pulled her into the mother of all hugs.

"Thank you," he murmured repeatedly. "Thank you, thank you..."

Nikki chuckled shyly. "Uh, keep the hug at five seconds. They really don't like me hugging other people."

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><p><strong>If miraculously enough, someone wants me to continue, know that I'm writing the second chapter (and potentially final one) as we speak. If there's interest, I'll let it out. If not, I hope you enjoyed this. And understood it. I already have the five angels in mind that Nikki's soul is bound to. And she will give quite the interesting interview as the SPN channel makes it debut! Let me know your thoughts in a review! Remember, this is just for fun, not meant to be taken seriously.<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, you, the one fabulous person who reviewed...thank you. This story is officially being written for you. Only thing you gotta know is that when I refer to Michael, I'm envisioning John's vessel, not Adam's. Why? Because this is fanfiction. Enjoy!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 2 - Interview Part #1 : A Message From Yours Truly<strong>

"Do you want me to go over the basic questions again?"

Nikki shook her head, pulling nervously at her sweaty thumbs.

"Are you sure?" Alex continued seriously, placing a hand on her back. "You know you don't have to do this."

"Alex-."

"Sorry."

He let his limb fall back to his side.

"They're just really, uh, possessive and can...know if I've been touched," she explained awkwardly, offering him a quick smile. "I'm ready for this. I promise. Just, don't forget what I told you. No question is off limits. I want to explain what it's really like being celestially engaged to five angels who have no concept of privacy."

"It's that bad?"

"Maybe I'm being dramatic." She paused, glancing down at her watch. "It should be about an hour's worth of questions, right?"

"Yep. I have the questions right here and if there's any you'd like to elaborate on, feel free to."

"Alright. If we get done by nine, I can probably make it back home without them noticing I'm gone."

"Dear girl, they don't know you're here?" Vincent inserted.

Used to the sudden appearances of supernatural beings, Nikki eyed him fondly. "Not at all. It'd be suspicious if they were all home and I wasn't, but, luckily, Michael's got some sort of get-together upstairs. The others are probably out. Lucifer might be the only one there, and even he needs his quiet time. It's not like he immediately accepted me after finding out our souls were intertwined. I was human. _Am_ human. That was icky for him."

"But he treats you well, right?" Mia clarified, taking a spot beside Vincent.

"In his own way, yes," she agreed enigmatically. "Who will be interviewing me?"

"Well, that's actually up to you," Alex decided. "We weren't sure who you'd be most comfortable with. It's your choice. For personal reasons, Vera declined."

"Understandable," Nikki accepted. "I think it'd be best if maybe it was Mia."

Said human looked startled.

"Me? I...I'm just a PA. I'm not even supposed to be here. And handling the first interview of SPN's syndication? I-."

"I have complete faith in you," Alex supported. "And it looks like Nicole is prepared. If you don't get the questions out right, she'll at least help you reach an answer."

"I was part of a debate team in high school," the girl offered helpfully. "We never actually won, but doing that for four years taught me to always have an answer prepared, even if I have to half-ass it."

Nodding firmly to herself, Mia straightened her posture determinedly. "You were mentioning that you want me to ask a lot of questions?"

"Don't be afraid to get intrusive. I think your audience will love that."

"Got it," she chirped anxiously. "Anything else?"

"Other than that, I'd like to thank you, Mr. Katsaros. For letting me be the first guest on what I hope will be a wildly successful channel. I know how much this means to you."

"Think nothing of it," Alex brushed off, though a faint blush did stain his cheeks. "I'm more intrigued with your story. We all are."

Nikki's encouraging grin was blinding. If there was anything all six of them could agree upon regarding the abnormal human, it'd be that her smiles were luminous.

Everything in the minutes leading up to eight o'clock was a swift blur of colors and animation. Behind the scenes, Brock and Audrey were correcting some last minute connection issues. Despite his dull demeanor, Brock was actually quite gifted with machines and technology. Together, he and Audrey made sure all last minute speed bumps were taken care of.

Meanwhile, Kolab traveled from state to state, reminding acquaintances of his who'd purchased the access code, to tune in to SPN. The interview would be most entertaining, he promised.

A good portion of his acquaintances were demons who were less than pleased upon learning a human would be the individual interviewed.

"It will all be worth it," Kolab guaranteed mysteriously. Because what is a demon if not mysterious?

This tactic managed to sway a fair majority. And since Kolab knew the outline of what Nikki was going to say, he didn't even have to lie.

Bonus points for him!

Vera, while the minutes ticked down, stood reclusively in the shadows, eyeing the two chairs on the stage and camera pointed at them. Her face was pale and emotionless. It wasn't until Vincent joined her a few minutes before syndication that she redirected her focus.

"May I inquire as to what's on your mind?" he asked quietly.

"I rather you didn't."

Vincent emitted a quiet sigh.

"I am to assume you were loyal to Lucifer?"

Her heated gaze was fixed on his face.

"How do you even know that?"

"Being a spirit doesn't make you clueless from the affairs running amok in this world. With the world's end, I too would have been left with nothing. It was important to stay informed. Humanity, from an outside perspective, is exhilarating to observe, if not frustrating."

Vera kept her lips tight, studying the stage once more.

"I cannot say I know what it is like to see my creator cease in his path for power and find solace with a race I despise. However, it has happened whether you desired it or not. The most noble advice I can offer is to free your mind of him. You have arrived at this destination for a reason."

"Fuck off," she growled.

"I'm afraid I don't know how to," Vincent acknowledged, somewhat befuddled. "But, I will inquire the proper techniques from Brock."

She almost hated herself after he vanished.

Almost.

****Eight O'Clock****

"Are you ready?" Mia whispered, briefly tuning out Alex's introduction.

"Definitely. Don't be nervous," Nikki soothed. "You're going to do fine."

"How is it you're less freaked about this than I am?"

Nikki inconspicuously slipped her right hand from between her crossed legs, presenting it to Mia's curious eyes. The limb, small, yet thin, shook like a faulty branch caught in a violent storm.

"Try pushing the nerves away to another part of your body," she suggested, retracting her hand.

Before Mia could follow this advice, Brock – manning the camera pointed at them – gave her two thumbs up.

Go time!

"Hi," she greeted, staring owlishly at the camera. "My name is Mia and tonight, I'm pleased to introduce to you our first – and hopefully not last – guest, Nicole Rathje. She is a human."

There was a stiff pause, but Nikki amended it by nodding politely. "Thanks for having me, Mia."

"You're welcome."

Another pause permeated the air, but far less awkward as Mia cleared her throat.

"Ordinarily, humans wouldn't find themselves on our show," Mia recited into the camera. "However, considering Nicole's extraordinary circumstances, just this once, we're making an exception. Nicole here, who also goes by Nikki, is a proud supporter of the gay rights movement."

At this slip up in introductions, Brock nearly lost it, pressing a hard palm over his lips. He was SO darned glad he was doing the camera work. _Behind_ the camera.

"Ah, I mean-."

"Yes," Nikki conceded casually, posture relaxed. "Though, it's weird they have to fight for the right to marry whoever they want. Love surpasses so many boundaries and traditions and..._species-."_

She trained her eyes on the camera purposefully, but otherwise appeared as if she were calmly reciting the words to her favorite poem.

"-that gender becomes such an obsolete thing."

"A wise statement," Mia followed up confidently. "If it wouldn't be too much of a bother, would you mind revealing your current relationship status?"

Backstage, there was a collective exhale of relief. Things were back on track.

"Well," Nikki chuckled mischievously, "it'd all depend on who you ask."

"Oh? Then let me ask you personally. Is there currently a special someone...or special _someones_ that have your heart fluttering?"

Staring straight into the camera, Nikki radiated a serene smile.

"Absolutely not. I'm single."

Mia nearly let her shock show, biting down on her lip harshly.

Meanwhile, Audrey was causing an uproar backstage. "She's sabotaging us!"

Alex looked panicked as well, but before he could voice his concern, Kolab spoke up.

"Trust her. This is exactly what she wants to do. It's going to work out, I promise."

"Single?" Mia repeated, laughing unevenly. "That's odd. One of the reasons we were so excited to have you on the show is because of the rare sigil you have carved into your skin. An Enochian sigil, binding you to not one, but _five_ angels."

"Yes," Nikki agreed, fingers sliding her collar down as she allowed the camera to pan onto the sigil. "I am, technically speaking, claimed by five angels. Three of them are God's personal favorite. But, this-,"

She brushed her fingers over the mark, all nervousness and politeness suddenly absent.

Instead, her expression was fierce.

"-does NOT mean they own me."

And just as easily, Nikki pulled up her shirt, returning to the picture of polite innocence once more.

"A relationship is about trust," she continued earnestly. "It's about letting the human out of the house once in a little while and not making her resort to sneaking out. It's about not getting unnaturally jealous because the human has friends and hugs said friends. It's about not keeping the human hidden away from the rest of the world, no matter how thoughtful the intentions are. It's about remembering that the human enjoys walking without aching all the time, no matter how delicious the sex is. I've got five celestial love-buddies who don't trust me to wander five feet away from the house. As of this moment, I am _blissfully_ single."

"Every access code has just been entered," Audrey exclaimed, glancing up at the stage excitedly. "Isis, this is intense!"

"You didn't coerce her to say all this, did you?" Alex questioned, throwing Kolab a skeptical look.

Of course he wanted to celebrate the fact that everyone who'd purchased an access code was now watching his television channel, but the victory wouldn't be nearly as sweet if there was some sort of script she'd gone over. He wanted his guests to be _real_.

"She's saying everything on her own free will," Kolab assured solemnly. "Why do you think I asked her to be on the show? Everyone assumes being the love interest of five powerful angels would be a chocolate cake wrapped in an orgasm. You get to feel safe and protected and loved. Not Nikki. She does love them in her own way, but also has her reasons for wanting to bash their brains in, other than the absurd possessiveness. I do believe she's about to become a celebrity in the supernatural community."

"Isn't anyone worried the feathery freaks are going to pop in?" Vera expressed, slipping out of the shadows previously harboring her.

"Sigils all around the stage," Kolab revealed gleefully. "Specifically, to keep angels out."

"What are the chances of them even watching this?" Audrey inserted.

"Nikki made sure to set the channel appropriately before leaving. I almost want to possess her just to see what it'll be like when they confront her. Other than the angry sex, it'll be marvelously chaotic."

Their attention soon shifted back to the discussion on stage.

"Well, if that didn't get your point across, I don't know what will. If I may, can we rewind a few years to when you first met the five of them? Those were dangerous times to be alive."

Mia felt far more at ease knowing Nikki had no intention of complicating the original question cards. And though her honest feelings regarding the sigil was a surprise, now that she revealed some aspects of her relationship, Mia could see exactly why she felt like a possession.

"I was at a community college in Louisville, Kentucky," Nikki recalled tenderly. "Eight credits away from getting my associate's in paralegal studies. I was going to help out lawyers or defense attorneys. Sort of like a well-paid assistant. My eventual goal was to actually be an attorney. But, then, a demon found me."

Raising her brows, Mia shifted forward in her seat.

"Did this demon have a name?"

"None that he gave me. But, he was...charming, for a demon. Not always ncie, but easy to converse with. I think I got lucky meeting him first."

"And what did this demon want from you?"

"After nearly scaring the crap out of me, he asked if I was aware of what was going on around the world. All the signs pointing to the end of days."

"He indicated the apocalypse was near?"

"Nudged it into my head. Then, told me I could stop it."

"Really?" Mia marveled, tilting her head. "How's that?"

"Mind you, I only took most of what he said halfheartedly. Demons, the end of days...I prayed I was experiencing a spontaneous acid trip. Well, that is until he started talking about the sigil underneath my shirt. I mean, he knew _everything_ about it. What the markings were, that it was pale, and how I'd had it since birth. Despite my initial doubt, I started believing him."

Distractedly, Nikki scratched across the sigil.

"After that, all the information was sort of a blur. But, basically, he pointed out on the marking how my soul was linked to the graces's of five angels. And that two of them were preparing to murder each other and bring about the end of the world if I didn't do something."

"Now that's daunting! Just to clarify, who were the two angels your soul was linked to?"

Exhaling deeply, Nikki turned to the camera, hating the blush that crawled its way across her skin.

"Michael and Lucifer."

"And...cut!" Brock yelled, flicking off the record button. "Good work, ladies. First break of the channel just started."

"Wow, way to leave it off on a cliffhanger," Nikki complimented.

"We wouldn't be a legitimate television channel if we let them know everything!" Alex exclaimed from a distance.

"Kolab?"

The demon popped up beside Nikki expectantly.

"Yes, sweetums?"

"You're sure they can't get past the sigils you put down?"

Kolab studied the carpet thoughtfully, tapping his heel.

"Let's hope not. Otherwise, this might turn a bit more Jerry Springer than we intended."

Nikki chuckled warily. This was going to be a long night.

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><p><strong>Nikki has a lot more to say about her five angels. Let's hope they don't show up before she loses that chance! Let me know your thoughts in a review!<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**My apologies for the late update. I started getting serious about this story, which is what I want to avoid. It's supposed to be cracky and humorous and unrealistic. Thank you all for the reviews (I particularly enjoyed the idea that Nikki has her own angel harem ^_^) and I hope you enjoy!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 3 - Interview Part #2: The Tug of War to End All Wars (09' Edition)<strong>

"So, the big reveal! Before break, we learned Nicole Rathje's life was relatively normal as of two years ago. She was a human, completely oblivious of the supernatural world, transitioning into the work force despite the end of days. That is until a mysterious demon entered her life and opened her eyes to what exactly that sigil she's had on her really meant. Not only did she learn she was bonded to five angels by her soul, but two of them were the archangels ready to burn this Earth to the ground. Nikki, if you could elaborate, how is it you finally made Michael and Lucifer's acquaintance?"

"Well, it's not as romantic as it sounds," Nikki explained slowly, fighting back a grimace. "And a lot of it...the demon didn't tell me how my life would change. He only said that my presence would steer them both from the apocalyptic path they were destined for. All I had to do was let them know I existed and they'd...stop."

"Meaning?"

"I thought maybe I'd just pop in, say hey, ask them to stop the apocalypse because I'd die too...which the demon assured me they wouldn't let happen...then, I'd go back to my life," she relayed, cringing at her innocence. "It...really didn't work out that way."

"And this demon helped you without asking for anything in return?"

"Yes. But he's not as selfless as he sounds. I asked him why he was helping me and he said that Lucifer, despite having created his kind, was still an angel. Once humanity was wiped out, he'd hone in on those he created - demons like him. He was just saving his own ass."

"Fascinating," Mia observed, throwing her an encouraging smile. "You are, as we're coming to see, the one who knows what all went down. If you may, what occurred after?"

"Fucking Crowley," Vera growled from backstage.

"I should have known the moment she said self serving," Kolab agreed, watching on with a fixed interest.

"The demon offered to take me to each archangel individually. Kinda like a pit stop," Nikki informed, frown in place. "First would be Lucifer, who was still waiting for one of the Winchesters to say yes to him. I can't remember which one."

"It was Sam," Mia inserted.

"Right, Sam. Sam, if you're watching this, you beautiful soul, thank you for not saying yes. Having Lucifer inside you is exactly like what you'd expect," she declared to the camera.

Mia bit back a chuckle, fingers resting over her lips.

"Anyway," she redirected, gaze trained back on Mia. "Lucifer expected Sam to say yes to him in the next five months, so he was sort of biding his time. I think we found him in Pennsylvania, in a really abandoned coal mine town. He was housed up in a beat up looking diner with at least ten guards outside, maybe more. I was too spooked to really analyze the whole thing. At that moment, I remember coming to terms with the fact that I was about to make my presence known to Lucifer. And that I only had a selfish demon's assurance that he wouldn't torture and murder me on the spot. I may have not been caught up on all my Christian lore, but even I knew what Lucifer thought of humanity. Safe to say I wasn't exactly jumping for joy to go in there."

"But, you did."

Nikki nodded. "The demon didn't want the others to see him. Had to protect his own butt and all. So, he told me to tell them I was there to see Lucifer. Saying this was guaranteed not to get me killed because they'd torture me first in hopes of finding out how I knew where they were located. Which sounds like a terrible plan on the surface, but wasn't all that bad. Demons love to torture and cause chaos. They'd want Lucifer's opinion on how to do the same to me. When I approached them and told them why I was there, they did exactly that."

"You must have been terrified."

"That's an _understatement_. If I didn't go to the bathroom before we got there, I'm pretty sure I would have wet myself. My head was coming up with a hundred and one scenarios of what could go wrong. And that's how I was really introduced to Lucifer. He was reclining in a booth, staring outside as if he wasn't responsible for the misery going on in the dark. His first words to me were-,"

_"-you think loudly for someone so timid."_

_"She says she's here to see you, master."_

_Nikki was shoved forward, just barely managing to stay on her feet as the demons crowded behind her._

_Inhaling shakily, she buried every urge, from muscle to bone, begging her to bolt. Especially when Lucifer turned to acknowledge her.  
><em>

_"I have no use for her. Do as you wish."_

_"Wait!" Nikki blurted, unwilling to accept such a conceited death by the Devil himself. "I have something to show you. Something that...I think you'll be interested to see. Maybe. I don't know. If you'd like, that is."_

_Lucifer raised a calculated brow at her inelegant ramble, eyes skimming her form dismissively._

_"Have you come to offer yourself to me? There was a group...I'm having a terrible time remembering their name...who apparently worships me. Well, worshiped. Their admiration and desire was as amusing as it was revolting."_

_She didn't know what caused her to say it, only that the light smirk gracing the angel's face definitely helped spur it forth._

_"You're not my type."_

_"You wound me," he mocked._

_Nikki ventured a few steps forward, hand remarkably still as it grasped onto the collar of her shirt._

_"Before you kill me, I need to show you this. Afterwards, you can do whatever you want to me."_

_"We plan to," chimed in a demon._

_Regarding her with only a margin more attention this time around, Lucifer gracefully slid out the booth and onto his feet._

_The moment he did this, Nikki froze, eyes shooting behind his body. Her hand, ready to reveal the sigil she hoped wouldn't earn her an eternity in hell, refused to cooperate. Even her heartbeat, pumping erratically up to this point, slowed to a patient beat._

"You were able to see his wings!" Mia gathered cheerfully.

"Side effect of my soul and his grace being wove together," Nikki agreed, nervously twiddling her thumbs. "They were actually...quite beautiful. And one of the reasons I wasn't so afraid anymore. I mean...you forget that Lucifer was handsome, you know? Usually, that part's left out of the Sunday school teachings. But, his wings...they were enormous and a white so luminescent that it seemed out of place with the demons surrounding him. They...glowed."

"That is _so_ romantic."

Nikki blanched, offering up a weak smile.

"My apologies," Mia reworded, coughing in a very professional manner to indicate undying seriousness. "You were still in a life or death situation. What happened next? Did Lucifer know you could see his wings?"

"Yes. And...that probably saved my life."

_"Wow," she breathed out, processing everything from the magnificent upward arc of the bones to the surprisingly well groomed wings._

_Lucifer said nothing, staring at her blankly. She could tell in just a split second of openness, that it was taking great strength for him not to showcase surprise._

_In recognizing this, she knew it'd be the only chance to plead her case._

_"My name is Nicole and I was born with this sigil on my skin."_

_She pulled her shirt down to reveal the mark, closing the remaining distance between them, but making sure she had enough room to not get claustrophobic._

_This distance also made her reflective. When had her life gone from bustling around courtrooms to presenting herself to the Devil? _

_Then again, maybe it served her right. There was a common saying she'd heard in the paralegal field about a place in hell reserved for every lawyer. __Did that technically include her too?_

_When his eyes found the sigil, she noted the tension suddenly creeping into his posture. Not only was his face completely unreadable, but he looked stiffer than a wax figure at a museum._

_"If you decide to fight Michael...you kill me too," she declared boldly._

"Wow, don't those words just pack a punch?"

"I'm not sure if it was the most eloquent thing to say," Nikki debated carefully. "But, he didn't kill me. In fact, he didn't let any of them kill me. After a few minutes of staring, I kind of started retreating until I was safely out of the diner. The demons, of course, wanted to kill me, but they wouldn't act until Lucifer said so. And since his reaction was really unusual, they knew better than to act without consent."

"Absolutely thrilling! How long did you wait before visiting Michael?"

"About an hour. The moment the demon took me back home, I vomited all over myself. All the nerves I'd fought to hide inside that diner, suddenly came splattering out."

"And what was your first overall impression of Lucifer?"

Nikki opened her mouth, then just as quickly, closed it.

Rather than speak and potentially regret her choice of words, she considered the question for a moment, bottom lip caught in between her teeth.

"I wanted nothing to do with him," she divulged. "_But_...I wasn't afraid of him either. I can't explain it, but after he saw the sigil, all that fear went away. I'd have rather been in his presence than the demons with him."

"So the allure begins!" Mia exclaimed happily.

Rather than argue, Nikki shifted in her chair. She wasn't quite sure when her tale became an epic love story.

"Michael was next, I take it?"

"Yes," she concurred. "He was with his garrison in Montana. The demon dropped me off further from the house than the diner in Pennsylvania. He said any closer and they could detect he was there. But, he told me not to worry. Which isn't very reassuring, coming from a demon. All I had to do was ask to speak to Michael and they should let me in without harm. I was human, after all. And they were the good angels. They followed God's wish to love all humanity."

"You sound vaguely sarcastic, if I'm hearing correctly."

Nikki scratched her chin, smile somewhat bitter.

"They tried to have my memory wiped the moment they realized I stumbled upon the house. Zachariah, head honcho of the regular angels, froze me in place and would have zapped me to God knows where if I hadn't practically begged him to talk to Michael."

"They allowed you into the house?"

"They were suspicious, but thought maybe I was carrying news that only a human could relay. They didn't see me anything more than a carrier pigeon. When I entered the house, Michael was standing in the den."

"Did you see his wings?" Mia questioned excitedly.

"As clearly as I did Lucifer's. You'd think after seeing one pair, you've seen them all. Not really the case. Michael's weren't angled up like his brother's. Instead, they were curved down in a very slight arc. They weren't as luminescent either, but still a gorgeous shade of white. It uh..._heh_...it sorta made me want to brush my fingers through them."

At the suggestive look Mia threw her, Nikki blushed hotly, immediately wishing she hadn't said that.

"I didn't mean...well, there's no innocent way of admitting what I said. But, like Lucifer, Michael knew the exact moment I saw his wings. I didn't exactly make my reaction subtle."

_"You can see them."_

_His voice held a strange calmness in it, tainted by the slightest bit of curiosity. It sounded as if he were asking a question and proclaiming a statement at the same time._

_Before Nikki could answer, Zachariah spoke up._

_"She's fully human. Maybe she has word about the Winchesters. We had a plan to send in a spy."_

_"The little human is not aiding or conspiring against the Winchesters," Michael commented smoothly, making his way forward with measured steps. "And beneath the scents of heathens, I can sense she has been in Lucifer's presence."_

_This sentence sparked the angels into a defense position. The only reason they held off was because Michael raised a patient hand, dark eyes never leaving her._

_"Hi," she introduced, floored as to why she felt more unsure in the presence of Michael (the rumored good angel) than Lucifer. "I...have seen your brother. Only to show him something that I thought he'd find interesting. I'm here to show you the same thing."_

_"If you have plans of offering yourself to me-."_

_"NO! Geez, what is it with you angels automatically assuming that?"_

_His lips curved into a smirk so subtle that Nikki instantly knew where Lucifer learned his from._

_"Rumor is that you're going to roast my planet alive. I really don't want that. My name is Nicole and I was born with this sigil branded into my skin."_

_Without further ado, she repeated the action of hours prior, yanking her shirt down so Michael's eyes could see said mark. At this point, she felt as if she were a witness on trial, relaying the information over and over and over again._

_"If you fight Lucifer, I die too."_

"Oh, that's dramatic! How did Michael respond?"

"About the same way Lucifer did. Growing tense and staying silent. It wasn't until Zachariah tried to turn me around so he could see the sigil, that Michael really reacted."

_"Hands. Off."_

"Territorial much?" Mia teased with a wink.

"You have no idea," Nikki mumbled, wincing at the woman's glee.

She didn't of course know the whole story. So, it would sound exciting from another's point of view.

"After Zachariah backed off, I expected Michael to say something. But, he was just as quiet and pensive as Lucifer was. For the second time that evening, I was able to walk out of a house, untouched and without harm. Though-."

Nikki paused, chuckling uncertainly.

"What is it?"

"Well, it's not really that important. I don't know why I'm mentioning it. But...uh, one of Michael's wings sorta...brushed across my back before I got to the door."

Mia looked positively radiant.

"Is that some sort of mating ritual?"

Cringing at the terminology, Nikki shook her head.

"No. It was a natural reaction to finally having found me. It happened unexpectedly and when I turned to him, though his face was neutral, he was blushing. Really, really reluctantly. The kind of blush you can't control no matter how desperately you want it off your face. And his wings sort of...shook a little when I looked at them. Lucifer later told me his would have as well had he not been using every muscle in his body to control it. In the presence of demons, it probably would have been frowned upon to let his wings caress me."

"So, they both know you exist now. Despite the apocalypse being averted, I'm to guess that wasn't the last you saw of either angel? Otherwise, you wouldn't be on here."

"Yes. The demon who carted me around to these places, came back a week after I made them aware of my existence and told me Lucifer went MIA, leaving his flanks leaderless. As soon as someone tried replacing him, battles popped up because no one could all agree on one leader. After awhile, the flanks split off until some demons were back to doing their own thing. Michael, as far as the demon had heard, sent his garrison back to heaven. And both Winchester brothers stopped having a target painted on their backs. Things looked like they were getting to be good again. The demon promised to never bother me again and the world got a little less scarier to live in."

Mia smiled happily at this. As if it were a particularly satisfying end to an intense novel.

Nikki drummed her fingers against her knee. This next set of events always brought on some sort of headache.

"Another week went by and I was at home one night, trying to copy one of Rachel Ray's _30 Minute Meals_. I'm a shit cook, but I felt like being adventurous. And that whole week, I'd been waiting to hear from a Louisville law firm. There was a possible internship position opening up and...God, doesn't this sound like the start of a really cruel joke? World lives another day, girl is on the verge of getting into her career...what else could go right?"

"Life is sometimes too ironic to let good things last."

"I like that," Nikki decided. "That about sums up what happened. One minute, I was sprinkling parsley over grilled chicken, the next, my kitchen had two archangels in it."

"Michael and Lucifer, I presume?"

"Who else?" came her exhausted inquiry.

_It was a reflex she didn't even know she possessed._

_"Isn't she amusing, Michael? It almost makes me overlook her crippling humanity."_

_Nikki backed away slowly, keeping the frying pan held up in front of her in a defensive position, swinging it every so often._

_"Stay away," she demanded shakily (c'mon, what was the proper response to an archangel invasion?). "You guys aren't supposed to be here."_

_"If it would please you to hit us with that tool, by all means, suit yourself," Michael invited (that smug bastard). "However, we do have matters to discuss that are more important than your attempts at feeling secure."_

"That's probably the moment I realized Michael was kind of an asshole," Nikki admitted thoughtfully. "Whatever you said, he'd always overrule it with some high handed comment or forceful command. The guy was a control freak. And according to the conversation they tried having with me, I was theirs to control."

_"Just because my soul and your graces are best buddies, doesn't mean we have to be in each other's lives."_

_"The sigil on your body suggests otherwise," Michael professed knowingly. "It is an Enochian mark signalling you to be the possession of the five angels whose graces intertwine with your soul. You were right to find us before we unknowingly killed you. Though, I doubt you thought it out much considering your surprise at our presence."_

_For the moment, she ignored the jab at her intelligence._

_"This...sigil...it's really special enough that you two would alter destiny?"_

_"Michael and I obviously still have our...differences to work out. He was ready to destroy me all because he believes Father-."_

_"-you think I'm responsible for this outcome? If you hadn't disobeyed Father and gone against his-."_

_"-of course being the oldest, you would assume you're-."_

_"-I loved you more than-."_

_"-never bow down to them-."_

"They started fighting?" Mia absorbed, eyes wide.

"Verbally, at first. I think I would have found it a lot more amusing if I wasn't using it as a distraction to get the hell out of the kitchen. Lucifer threw the first punch and after that, I heard a lot of beating wings and wood being splintered. I thought if I just made it out the front door and away from them, I could work out a plan. Maybe find another supernatural being who knew how to keep angels away from me. But, that didn't work out. The moment I bolted out the front door, I ran into another body. "

"Was it Michael or Lucifer?"

"Neither," Nikki declared with a sigh. "They were still working out their issues in the kitchen...or it could have spilled into the living room. I know that I suddenly couldn't hear Rachel Ray on the television anymore."

"So, who did you run into?"

_"Dad damn, they really didn't waste anytime, did they?" the man whistled in amusement._

_Attempting to detangle herself from the intruder proved difficult considering they were keeping her in an unnaturally tight hold._

_"Hey, hey, calm down, Nikki-pie. You're making my wings want to coddle you."_

_Pausing, Nikki glanced up, mouth inching open in amazement._

"They were gold. Like the sun, but with an auric tint," she relayed, tone notably softer. "Such a huge difference in color from either Michael or Lucifer's."

"And he knew who you were?"

"Yep. Apparently, my disability was going around in the angel community about being able to see wings."

_"Let me go or I will bite," she threatened, shaking off the desire to continue staring at his wings._

_The angel smiled crookedly at this, tilting his head as he pulled her tighter into his arms._

_"Tempt me with an offer like that and I'll bite right back," he promised teasingly. "You're a pretty big deal, you know that?"_

_"I don't know who you are, but-."_

_"Gabriel," he introduced, never lowering his grin. "And you, who got my brothers to stop going Rambo on each other's asses, are officially my new favorite human. I could just...kiss ya!"_

_"No, no, no," Nikki squealed, twisting her head away from his diving lips (he wasn't really going to, but her reaction was entertainment enough)._

_Twisting her head the opposite way, of course, revealed part of her flesh hidden beneath the v-necked collar of her t-shirt. And Gabriel, who was observing her in amusement, just happened to glance down._

"He pulled the rest of my shirt away with a thumb," Nikki recounted. "Once he got a good look at the whole sigil, he did the whole stunned silence reaction, just like his brothers."

"Wait...so, up to this point, he wasn't aware he was part of the five angels whose grace met with yours?"

"Nope. Just wanted to meet the girl who helped prevent his brothers from destroying each other. From there on...well, it all got really, really complicated."

"ANNNNNNDDDDD...that's a break!"

"Good heavens, Nikki, this story is incredible!" Mia expressed, clapping her hands merrily.

"I liked the part where you threatened to beat them to a pulp with a frying pan," Brock inserted through a chuckle.

"My biggest regret is never trying to," she confessed wistfully.

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><p><strong>And, we've got a third angel! Gabriel, come on downnnn! Oh Chuck, this is making my teeth rot with all the craziness and fluff. Let me know your thoughts in a review!<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**Been a bit of a busy week, so I apologize for no update. Thank you so, so, so much for all the reviews. I know this story won't be getting a lot because of how out there it is, but if it's all the same, I appreciate them wholeheartedly. Enjoy this next installation!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 4 - Interview Part #3 : Kidnapping Makes the Heart Grow Fonder...Lie, It Actually Scares the Hell Out of People<strong>

"So, you've been out there. Our guinea pig, so to speak. What's the reaction so far?"

"The demons want to kill Nicole," Andre stated bluntly, glancing worriedly at the stage. "Well, most of them, anyway. A lot of them are the Lucifer loyalists still left over. I've been all over since syndication of the interview and last place I was in - a demon bar in Texas - was when Nicole revealed that Lucifer didn't kill her because she meant something to him. They are livid. Some want their master back. Others want to kill them both. It's a circus."

"God," Alex muttered grimly. "I don't want this to get her killed. I never wanted that."

"They wouldn't dare try killing her," Kolab assured. "Trust me, it's all talk. Which happens during viewings. Secrets get revealed that have the audience jabbering."

"Are you sure?" Alex insisted, eyeing the demon worriedly. "I'm not going to continue the interview just to get ratings if I know Nikki has a chance of being killed the moment she steps out the door."

Kolab opened his mouth, but it was Vera who answered.

"It'd be a suicide mission, and then some, attempting to kill her. She's not only protected, but bound to five angels - three of which are nearly gods. Demons can talk all the shit they want, but everyone - even the stupidest, most useless of our kind - know how stupid of an idea it'd be to harm her. Should they succeed, they'll wish they didn't. And, if anything, this interview put a huge 'do not touch' sign on her."

This eased Alex considerably.

"That's a relief," Vincent inserted smoothly. "I quite like her. She's charming, in her own way."

"She talks too much," Vera remarked.

"It's an interview. She's not going to be doing sign language," Audrey defended. "How about elsewhere, Andre?"

"Other than the demons, everyone is adoring the interview," he revealed optimistically. "No one knew exactly what happened to suddenly stop the two wackos from going at each other. There was always debate about it. I thought maybe God intervened finally and threw them into a corner for a timeout. It's nice that everyone's finally getting the whole story."

"And the reception to Nicole? Despite her being human," Alex continued.

Andre laughed at this, crossing his arms. "Let's just say that when we get to the portion of the show where viewers are allowed to call in, she's going to hear everything from how lucky she is to offers of helping her escape her "abusive" relationship to questions about whether she wants to meet up for drinks and a screw. Our kind are taking to her extraordinarily well."

"She's decent, for a human," Kolab offered.

"Had I the chance to get away with it, I'd kill her," Vera followed up, unimpressed by all the attention Nikki was getting. "She doesn't deserve Lucifer."

"Jealous?"

"Shut up," she growled, ignoring Kolab's smirk.

"Let's see what else Nikki has to reveal. I imagine the story has much more to it," Alex guessed.

With the exception of Vera, everyone nodded.

"And we're back with our guest Nikki Rathje," Mia announced into the camera, "who before break, found out the identity of yet another angel whose grace was entwined with her soul. Not only just an angel, but an archangel. That's three, so far. Tell us, was it daunting, standing in your house, knowing you were connected to these celestial beings?"

"Initially, no. Which sounds stupid, I know, but you have to understand that I didn't know what the sigil actually meant. I knew I was important enough for them not to want to kill me, but anything more than that, and it never really crossed my mind. I just wanted them out of my house."

_"I'm guessing you're one of the five angels connected to me?" Nikki speculated, watching out of the corner of her eye as Gabriel's thumb leisurely brushed over the sigil._

_"You can see my wings?" was his distracted reply._

_"And Michael's. And Lucifer's," she added warily._

_It was at this point that it clicked in her head. Though, it probably should have sooner when she'd gone to see Michael._

_Inside the house in Montana, she'd only been able to pick up on his wings, but none of the other angels with him. Then, there were Lucifer's and Gabriel's. It wasn't too much of a stretch to assume that if she saw wings, the angel was probably connected to her._

_Without warning, Gabriel pulled her into his body, engulfing her in a tight hug._

_Nikki inhaled carefully, unsure what to do with her dangling arms as Gabriel continued cuddling her like she was his own special, human-sized teddy bear._

_"Dad REALLY made you guys difficult to find," he chuckled happily._

_Awkwardly, Nikki lifted a hand and patted him on the back._

_"Well, you found me. Nice to meet you. Now, if you could kindly take your brothers and leave-."_

_"Leave?" Gabriel questioned, pulling back to look at her. "Um, hells no. Sorry, Nikki-pie, you're on our radar. From now on, there's nowhere you can go without us."_

_"No," she denied slowly, "I'm an adult, I can go wherever I want by myself. Can you tell your brothers to stop fighting before they destroy my kitchen?"  
><em>

_"Oh, they're not that bad."_

_A loud crash forced both of them to whip their heads around._

_"He just threw my TV at Lucifer," Nikki observed._

_"They really do love each other," Gabriel defended. "Might not always show it in the best way."_

_Lucifer reciprocated by sending shards of broken glass from a destroyed table, into Michael's skin, forcing the bleeding archangel to the floor._

_"Yeah, maybe I should step in."_

"There was a lot of yelling," Nikki recalled, smiling crookedly. "Gabriel is someone who does what he does without anyone's permission. But, that doesn't mean he likes being ignored either. By two groups in particular. The first is me. One time, he switched all my business clothes into lingerie and I stopped talking to him for an entire week. That was a particularly brutal seven days for the both of us. The second group is his siblings. Case and point, when Michael and Lucifer continued beating the living hell outta each other and annihilating my kitchen and living room despite Gabriel's protests, he transported each of them to opposite parts of the Earth. I think Michael ended up somewhere in Taiwan and Lucifer in Antarctica."

"Gabriel sounds like quite the character."

"You have no idea."

_"I love them, but Dad help me if they can't be a bunch of stubborn pricks."_

_"Thank you," Nikki mumbled, staring numbly at her ruined kitchen and living room._

_"Cheer up, kiddo. Your new home will have all of this and more."_

"New home?" Mia interrupted with interest. "What did that mean?"

"It meant the end of independence as I knew it. Though, I was stupid enough to assume it wasn't going to happen."

_"I'm not leaving," Nikki denied half-heartedly, lifting up a singed frying pan. "Maybe I can tell my parents there was a tornado. Or a gang war."_

_"Don't worry about it, Nikki. I have it all under control."_

_"A bunch of gorillas got loose? A heavy weight competition gone wrong?" she continued, ignoring the archangel's eyes on her as she wandered through the rubble._

_With a sigh, Gabriel snapped his fingers._

_Nikki blinked, amazed to see everything that'd been destroyed and pulverized, back to its neat and non-ruined form._

_"Did you-?"_

_"Neat trick, isn't it? But, you gotta know you can't stay here anymore, right?"_

_It took her a moment to comprehend the seriousness in his voice._

_"Like hell," she protested. "Being connected to you guys does not mean we have to keep seeing each other."_

_Gabriel released an unnervingly loud laugh at that, slapping his knee._

_"Ooh, that was a good one. You really are perfect, aren't you?"_

"None of them thought there was anything wrong with me," Nikki explained, fidgeting slightly in her seat. "Which is weird, right? As humans, all we do is stupid stuff. We've got a shit ton of weaknesses. We've got imperfections that we rid through agonizing procedures. If someone was to call us perfect, we'd thank them, maybe, but it'd be impossible to believe because we know we aren't."

Mia nodded accordingly. "By none of them, I'm to assume you mean the angels you're bound to?"

"Yes. It doesn't mean that some of them wouldn't get a bit frustrated by my human nature. Michael in particular. He would get so testy when I argued with him about what I was allowed to do and where I was allowed to go. But, really, how the hell else did he think I'd react? I'd always wanted to be a lawyer, so arguing what I didn't believe in, came naturally. However, other than those few times, they really thought I was the greatest human alive. And even to this day, I can't fully believe that. Great humans? Try Gandhi and Mother Teresa. I'm mediocre, at best. And yet, that never deterred them from thinking I was perfect."

_"Sweetheart, you're bound to five angels. That news isn't going to stay hidden forever. Even if we wanted to leave you alone, which, we DON'T, your life is gonna get pretty damn complicated when people who don't like us, show up and try to hurt you. Definitely not letting them do that. We'll give you tonight to pack your bags. Say your goodbyes to mom and pops. Feed the cats. Sell the house. Cancel your appointments. But, tomorrow, we're whisking you away."_

_He sounded so nonchalant about the whole thing that the only response Nikki came up with was, "I don't have any cats."_

_"You sure about that? There's cat hair on your couch."_

_She tried to contain an embarrassed blush at this, tearing her eyes away from him. This wasn't exactly the proper time to admit that she let in a few strays from time to time because she had the tendency to get lonely._

_"Not happening."_

_"So happening. Look at the bright side, you're going to have the eternal protection and company of angels who really, really like you. We'll have to find the other two, but that's a relief, isn't it?"_

_Nikki mindlessly sank down on the couch, slipping both hands beneath her thighs. Within a few seconds, she was working on deep breathing._

_"Hey," Gabriel eased, taking the empty spot next to her, "we're not doing this to hurt or scare you. Dad didn't just give you to us. He gave us to you. Is that really so bad?"_

_"If you really like me," she sounded out, "you'd let me live my life without interfering. I'm happy to keep the peace. Peace is good. But I can't be involved with any of you in anyway. I've got an interview coming up and I went to college to get my associates, damn it. Those hours of studying are not going to be for nothing."_

"At the time, Gabriel was probably the most sympathetic to what I'd be walking away from," Nikki admitted. "For a while, he just kind of held me as I tried processing the fact that everything I'd ever worked for wasn't going to matter."

"That is tough," Mia acknowledged cordially. "And it'd be frustrating to let these strangers take control of your life."

"Exactly! Michael didn't understand that. He thought he was doing me a favor. Lucifer thought he was saving me from a life of despair and disappointment. In his head, he separated me from the rest of humanity. Which meant that I couldn't continue being mixed in with them. He was difficult to understand for a long time."

"So, you let them take you in the morning?" Mia assumed.

Nikki chuckled at this. "Not if I had anything to do with it. After Gabriel left to go find his brothers, I spent that entire night doing research on angels. I didn't exactly know where to start. The whole supernatural world opening up to me was new and I was just a little bit frantic. It started to sink in that they had claim to me. Ownership. All because of a mark on my skin. I would have done anything to get rid of it."

"What ended up being your solution?"

Releasing a mix of a groan and sigh, Nikki shook her head, slipping a hand over her eyes. "You've got to understand that I was desperate. And I didn't understand everything at the time, including how the supernatural world worked. All I knew was that I couldn't let them take me. When you're a human, you take freedom for granted. Even being able to pick out the kind of deodorant you want at Wal-Mart is a freedom. It's not until that freedom is at risk of being taken away that you really begin to understand how important it is. Michael had mentioned earlier in the evening that I was in their possession. Not the smartest word to use toward someone who values their independence. That night, I'd been willing to look into any opportunity in order to avoid my fate."

"And you found a way," Mia determined.

"Yes. Looking back on it, I can't decide if it would have been better to swallow my pride and accept my fate. A part of me was pleased that I could spite them. Let them know the whole ownership thing wasn't going to work out. On the other hand, I was incredibly stupid and naive and that almost led me to suffer a fate worse than death."

"Aw, that's kinda harsh," Mia soothed. "What could you have done that was so regrettable?"

Grinning nervously, Nikki looked anywhere but the camera.

"I sorta um...kind of..._err_...well, because of my paralegal background, I thought I knew what I was doing...so...I may have...soldmysoultoacrossroadsdemon."

Mia gasped and even Brock lifted his head from above the camera to gape at her.

"You sold your soul to a crossroads demon?"

"Please don't judge me," she begged, meeting her gaze. "It was four in the morning and my brain was wired and I was scared and I'd let in a favorite stray of mine - Mr. Miyagi - who I suddenly realized I'd probably never see again and none of my research on angels was getting anywhere. When I stumbled across the loophole, I was excited and entirely too willing to do whatever I could to ensure my freedom."

"Oh, Nikki."

"It wasn't the smartest decision in the world," she agreed hastily. "But, the demon did make it happen."

_It was the intersection of a dirt road nearly overrun with grass. Nikki hadn't lived in the town long enough to know the story behind its desertion and infrequent use, but she'd heard when the town was first being built, it'd been a main road._

_Her watch read six forty-five and the sky was already painted with pale pinks, fiery oranges, and a receding, heavy blue. The sun was just dying to burst through the clouds. She'd spent an hour assembling the ingredients for the box she was to bury and five minutes of anxious pacing with the box in hand, wondering if this was the smartest idea in the world._

_Making a pact with a demon? Surely there would be some sorta repercussions._

_On the other hand, was it really worse than being the property of three angels? Worse than not being able to get a job, buy a car, settle down somewhere, live her life? Plus, not all demons had to be bad, right? There was the one who found her and directed her toward Michael and Lucifer. Granted, that's what led to this predicament in the first place, but he'd helped her avoid the apocalypse. That had to be some sort of positive sign._

_Or maybe she was looking for justification where there wasn't any._

_Regardless of her indecision, two minutes later, Nikki was wiping the dirt off her fingers, calmly standing up._

_"Why aren't you just a diamond in the rough?"_

_Nikki backed away when she saw a woman in a black dress, standing directly above where she'd buried the box._

_"Is that a compliment?" she managed to ask._

_"I can't afford to be rude, now can I? I'm a better businesswoman than that. Nicole, is it?"_

_Startled by the demon knowing her name, she slowly nodded, eyeing the woman cautiously._

_"And you are?"_

_"Does that really matter?"_

_"If you know my name, then you'll know my interest of study. I'd like to know who I'm doing business with."_

_"Lawyers. You really are the most unnecessarily suspicious customers. But, if you think it'll help," she caved, velvet red lips twisting into a smirk. "Lynn."_

_"Lynn?" Nikki repeated, tilting her head. "That's it?"_

_"A reminder of my human life," she shrugged. "It's an amusement."  
><em>

"Lynn?" Vera mumbled curiously. "I always wondered what happened to her."

"I think you can take a guess," Kolab answered quietly.

_"Well, Lynn, I have this sigil on my skin. And according to it, I'm somehow involved with angels who think I'm their property."_

_Lynn chuckled, pacing casually around her._

_"So dismissive of it. You really don't understand it's meaning, do you?"_

_"I don't care what it means. I want a way out of it. Can you do that?"_

_"It'll require me to go above and beyond of my duties. God himself put that mark on you. I'm good, but I'm not that good. Besides your soul, what are you willing to offer me?"_

_Nikki paused, taking the time to absorb the demon. If there was a time all of her legal training and learning's would come in handy, this would be it._

_"Nothing."_

_"Nothing?"_

_"My soul is the only thing we're bargaining, nothing else. Take it or leave it."_

_"You don't get to make demands, sweetheart. Don't forget who you're dealing with."_

_"Neither should you. I still have angels on my side. You kill me, they'll hunt you down."_

_Lynn's lips thinned into a straight line._

_"What is your desire specifically?"_

_"I want the bond broken between myself and the five angels whose graces are bound to my soul. I want them to have absolutely no claim on me."_

_"The stupidity of your race never ceases to astound me."_

_"Was that a no?"_

_"Don't push it."_

_"I don't want to, but my hours are numbered. And I'm sure there's another crossroads demon that would love to have the honor of swiping a soul away from five angels and God himself."_

_Nikki already came to the conclusion before the meeting, that this was a tempting offer. In fact, her whole bargaining chip rested on this. And from the way Lynn's shoulders sagged down a centimeter, she knew the offer was too good to pass up._

_"I get your soul in ten years," Lynn reminded._

_"Seventy."_

_"**What?**" the demon growled._

_"You give me seventy years. I'll be in my nineties when you come to collect."_

_"What makes you think I'd ever agree to that?"_

_"The apocalypse didn't happen. Things are getting back to normal. Humans are finding the will to live again. Not exactly a booming industry right now for the soul trade."_

_Nikki wasn't exactly sure if what she was talking about was actually true, but she recited it with enough conviction that she could tell Lynn believed that she believed it._

_"Again, there's also the whole honor of screwing over five angels and God himself. Think of the recognition and admiration you'll get. Might even get Lucifer's approval."_

_Since the demon never mentioned it, Nikki was under the impression she didn't know Lucifer was one of the five angels bound to her. She doubted a lot of the demons actually remembered that Lucifer was an angel originally. For the moment, keeping this to herself might be beneficial. Otherwise, Lucifer might lose credibility and the idea of having his approval would mean nothing._

_"Fifty-five."_

_"Sixty-five."_

_"Sixty."_

_The determined glint in Lynn's eye made Nikki nod in agreement._

_"Understand that I will get only the greatest of pleasure collecting your soul," the woman added._

_"I'd be insulted if you didn't."_

_Approaching her, Lynn studied her with a renewed sense of triumph._

_"You really would trade your own soul just to have the illusion of freedom?"_

_"And you'd accept my offer to have the illusion of honor. We're not that different."_

_"Touche," she agreed. "A kiss will finalize the agreement-."_

_"-if it'd be possible, could you give me a signed copy of the entire pact?"_

_The demon rolled her eyes._

_"There's too much resting on this deal for me to screw you over."_

_"Humans do it daily. Consider this extreme cautiousness on my part."_

_With a wave of her hand, Lynn conjured a piece of manila parchment. Nikki accepted the document, eyes skimming over the black, cursive ink._

_A minute later and she finally nodded._

_"Will kissing a woman make you think twice?" Lynn mocked._

_Nikki fought back a grin, taking a step closer to the demon._

_"I experimented in college."_

"Did you really?" Mia followed up.

"Well, yes. But that's a story for a different day."

"Of course. So, the kiss took place and the deal went through?"

"In a nutshell, yeah. Lynn told me to keep watching my sigil within the next hour. She had to get in contact with someone and after that, there should be a black ring around it rather than the normal pale."

"And did it happen?"

"Yep. Thirty-six minutes later. I was at home by this point. My head was in between craving caffeine and wanting to pass out. But, I needed to make sure that it'd work, you know?"

Mia nodded.

"And just like Lynn said, the next time I looked at the sigil, the white outlining the mark, was gone, only to be replaced by black. She told me the color signified a break of a bond or spell."

"Well, it may not have been the smartest decision, but I have to give you kudos, Nikki. It sounded like you knew what you were doing when you made the pact."

"That's probably the only positive to come out of the whole situation. I went to sleep a few minutes later, my heart considerably less heavy. To me, it was a win. Sixty years of undisturbed life and having the power to make my own decisions as opposed to having them made for me. You'd consider that good, wouldn't you?"

"Definitely. Then again, I wasn't in your situation."

"That's a good point," Nikki conceded. "Any chance I can skip what happened next?"

"If it makes you uncomfortable, by all means, go ahead. But, I am pretty intrigued to find out what happened next, as is the audience, I imagine."

Clearing her throat, Nikki straightened up in her chair, crossing her legs, then uncrossing them, only to cross them again. You didn't have to be a rocket scientist to see how nervous she was.

"In the little over two years that I've known Michael, Lucifer, and Gabriel, I believe that selling my soul to a demon and breaking the sigil is probably the angriest I've ever made them. Go figure. Over the night and into the morning, they were actually able to set aside their differences, at least temporarily, and begin creating the house I'd come to live in for the following years. I mean...there's angry-angry, and then there's _archangel-angry_. It never got to the point where I ever felt threatened for my life. I think a lot of that was my own anger combating the fear. But, it definitely made me wary about getting on their bad side for awhile."

"Did they know the deal went through the moment you made it?"

"No. Lucifer was actually the one who got wind of it. He'd been in tune with the demon community to make sure none of them would try coming for me, though at that point, very, very few knew of my importance. He wanted to keep it that way."

"That's awfully thoughtful of him."

"You woulda loved being engaged to the five of them," Nikki teased. "The whole relationship would have been a lot easier."

"Yes, but they got adventure with you. And you held your own. I can't say that I'd have done the same."

"With someone as arrogant as Michael and possessive as Lucifer, trust me, you'd find the courage to wanna stay true to yourself," she promised. "So, when I woke up-."

"-we'll hear the details after the break," Mia interjected, nodding dutifully at the camera.

Once Brock flicked the device off, Nikki relaxed into her chair.

"If you really don't want to talk about it-."

"-no, it's fine," she brushed off. "I should. It was a pretty important argument. Plus, I think a part of me doesn't want to admit that I'm prone to making stupid decisions, even though I know it's part of being human."

"Nikki, stop sweating it so much," Mia comforted. "You've got me on your side as well as any woman who fears the loss of her freedom. When put in that kind of situation, we don't always think the most clearly. Just like you told me, you were a human with no options left and a very small amount of time to fix everything. You were told that your whole life would be changed all because of a mark on your skin. You're allowed to make mistakes. You know we wouldn't be human without them."

"She's right," Brock chimed in. "You know how many crazy women I've tangoed with? Worse than that, I knew they were crazy and I still did it. I'm worse than you because I knew the consequences of my mistakes. Though, I can't say I regret 'em all. There was this one gal, a three hundred year old witch, that-."

"We get it," Mia expressed swiftly, though not unkindly.

Brock nodded cheerfully. "'Kay. But you ain't the first human to do something stupid for the sake of their freedom. And you ain't gonna be the last."

* * *

><p><strong>So, Nikki may not have made the smartest decision. But she's human. Prone to mistakes. Even if it doesn't seem like one at the time. Oh, but how will her three angels react? And can they do anything to get her out of the pact? So many questions left unanswered. Let me know your thoughts in a review!<strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**I received some very kind reviews last chapter. Bless you all, you beautiful people. Thank you. This chapter is a bit more serious than I intended, but it'll get crazy again in the next one. It's also the first one I'm mildly dissatisfied with, but let's hope I'll make it up in future chapters to come. Enjoy!**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5 – Interview Part #4: If Pissing off Archangels Were an Olympic Event, I'd Win Gold<strong>

"I have to say I'm impressed we haven't had any of the angels try to get inside the studio since syndication. If they are watching this, as Nikki intended," Andre mentioned.

"Sigils are a divine gift," Kolab declared. "I doubled the warding around the stage, but made sure the whole studio was covered all the way around. Can you imagine if they could actually get in here?"

"I would pay to see that," Vera pitched in. "They would tear her limb from limb."

"Highly unlikely when one considers-."

"Sarcasm, Vinny, I was being sarcastic," she growled.

Vincent nodded accordingly. "My sincerest apologies. Sarcasm continues to elude my comprehension."

"And stop being so damn polite!"

Before Vincent could offer up a response, Vera vanished from her spot.

"What's going on with her, Kolab?" Alexander inquired quietly.

"She's working through her dislike and jealousy."

"Of Nikki?"

"Who else? The human is bound to Lucifer himself. That is a fate most demons would relive centuries of torture for."

"Seriously?" Audrey input, looking extremely skeptical. "That'd be like having sex with your Father."

"We pride our kind in being adventurous."

"It's a wonder most of you don't have daddy issues."

Kolab continued grinning at Audrey's disgust.

"Before break," Mia interrupted from the stage, "we learned of the crossroads pact Nikki made in order to escape a fate she believed to be worth her very soul. If you could, explain to us what occurred on the day you made this pact."

Nikki released a deep breath, fingers intertwined on her lap.

"I'd got in maybe four hours of sleep before I woke up to the sound of my bedroom window shattering. Which is generally never a good sign."

_With a fair amount of hesitance, Nikki slipped out of bed, rubbing the tiredness out of her eyes. Just inches away, shards of glass littered the carpet._

_Did her window just spontaneously combust?_

_Next thing she knew, her ears detected the familiar sound of flapping wings._

_Ah, crap._

_Brave face, she quickly thought. You did nothing wrong._

_They appeared all at once in front of the entrance to her room and good God was it a relief that her sight was still a bit blurry because taking in the expressions on their faces would not have been much of a stress reliever._

_Blinking until she could see clearly, Nikki approached the trio carefully, attempting not to feel subconscious in her Scooby Doo pajama bottoms and Tears for Fears t-shirt. Bedtime was probably the most liberal she could ever go with her outfit choices considering most days were some combination of a skirt, dress pants, blouse, or blazer._

"I love Scooby Doo," Mia remarked suddenly. "Scooby was always my favorite."

"I was more of a Velma girl. One time, I was banned from saying or using jinkies in my English class. I hadn't realized how much I incorporated it into my speech and my papers. And according to my teacher, it was ill use of sophisticated vocabulary. She got fired a year later for using a cane on a student."

"That's...unexpected."

Nikki shrugged. Adding in the last bit was more of a stalling tactic.

_"You guys look like you slept on the wrong side of your wings last night," she commented lightly, ignoring the tension permeating the air._

_None of them responded._

_Exhaling gravely, Nikki observed each angel separately. She could only handle so much anger being directed at her at once. Which is one of the reasons she loved the legal field. Everyone, minus the opposing lawyer, had to wear a poker face._

_Among the three, Michael was the one that looked ready to strangle the life out of her, even if, physically, the desire barely showed. Rather, his blue eyes were the tell-tale sign, smoldering from the anger he was trying to contain._

_Lucifer donned a more calm sort of expression, though his anger balanced on the uneven frown he wore. It was dangerously subtle._

_Gabriel seemed almost discouraged, but masked it by appearing rigid and wearing an uncharacteristically grave expression._

_All in all, Nikki would have wished to be anywhere else but there._

_However, she reminded herself why she made the deal in the first place. Her backbone could really use the justification right about now._

_"So, you heard the news, I take it?" she asked nonchalantly, crossing her arms. "Yes, I might regret it in sixty years, but-."_

_"Don't speak," Michael commanded sternly._

_She obeyed him for all of three seconds._

_"You don't own me. Not anymore. I had every right-."_

_"-you didn't and if Lucifer can't remedy this, there is no demon on this Earth who will be able to save you."_

"Pretty daunting stuff," Mia warily voiced.

"It certainly didn't get better."

_"It is just a mark!" she exclaimed, unafraid of approaching them. "One insignificant mark that means not-."_

_Michael's wings flared out behind him, easily spanning the full width of her room. And unlike the comfort they'd brought back in Montana, now, they were nothing more than a pure reflection of how consuming his anger was._

_"Congratulations, Nikki-pie," Gabriel offered, backing away from his older brother, "I've never seen Mikey this pissed off."_

_"Gabriel," Michael warned, throwing the man a cold glare._

_"I'm amused by it," Lucifer agreed a second later, keeping his distance as well._

"I thought maybe the argument would die down right there," Nikki added optimistically.

_"As our human, you had no right to give your soul to another," Michael reprimanded._

_"You guys weren't leaving me much of a choice. I improvised with the time I had left."_

_"You did not have our permission!"_

_She'd been gradually nearing them, but with the sudden force in Michael's voice, Nikki was thrown backwards onto the bed by an invisible punch of energy._

_Rather than submit, his action further succeeded to aggravate her._

_"Screw your permission," she combated, pushing herself up by the elbows. "The alternative was being the chew toy of-."_

_"Shut. Up," Michael interrupted, taking a menacing step forward._

_By now, Gabriel and Lucifer had distanced themselves away from their older brother. And it was this display of their own divorce from his side that made Nikki close her mouth. Not until that silence fell did she realize how horribly she was shaking._

"It wasn't just his words, but the atmosphere," Nikki tried to explain, shifting in her chair. "When someone really powerful gets that angry, the air is almost...electrified with untapped power. Gets unbelievably tense to breathe. And his vessel...well, the dark eyebrows _really_ didn't help."

_"Lucifer, I hope you're able to fix this."_

_"You can't-," Nikki argued._

_Without warning, she was pushed backwards across the mattress, releasing a soft oof when her back smacked into the wooden headboard._

_"Speak only when spoken to."_

"I wanted to get pissed, but this was the first time he was using his grace against me. Not the ideal situation to fight back in."

"But, you stuck by your decision, right?"

"More or less. It was just a matter of saying the right thing so Michael didn't put me through the wall."

_"It should be a simple and painless affair," Lucifer assured smoothly. "For everyone but the demon."_

_Nikki tried to suppress a shiver at the indifference in his voice. It was unnerving to accept that she'd be supplying Lynn with plenty of agony, but worse, that Lucifer didn't even flinch at the prospect of hurting what he'd helped create._

_In the blink of an eye, Gabriel was sitting on the bed, one hand slipping behind Nikki and resting on the center of her back. From the tentative dig his fingers made, she could feel him trying to soothe her shaking nerves with gentle rubs. And, inch by inch, she watched as his right, gold wing curled protectively around her._

_"What was going through your noggin, lady?" he inquired with a half-smile, eyeing her with raised brows. "I mean, if we're that bad of company, that's one thing. I can expect that out of Mikey and Luci. But me? Sister, I am a bundle of fun."_

"He wasn't angry anymore?"

"He was a little bit, but in the years I've come to know Gabriel, I realized he doesn't stay angry long. At least, not at me. Most of it, I think, was disappointment. It was sort of a kick in the balls to know the human you're bound to would rather spend all of eternity in hell than in your company. And in between Michael's anger, Lucifer's weird passiveness, and Gabriel's well-hidden unhappiness, I was kind of confused as to how I should handle the situation."

"Rightly so. Was there any regret you felt for making the deal?"

Nikki chuckled tiredly, running a hand through her hair. "Every time I wanted to, Michael talked and suddenly, I was glad all over again."

_"You'd have done the same thing in my position," she told him quietly._

_"Don't force me to strip you of your voice," came Michael's sharp threat._

_"Uh, big bro? Are you starting to see maybe why she jumped at the opportunity to get away from us?"_

_"You're on her side?"_

_"She isn't a disobedient soldier from your garrison you can batter into submission. Or a wayward angel in need of discipline. She's our human and in order for this to work out, we're gonna need to be a little less smitey and a little more on her side."_

_"Thank you," Nikki expressed, smiling weakly at Gabriel._

_"As unaccustomed as I am to asking your opinion, tell me you're seeing my point?"_

_Lucifer regarded Nikki with a lazy stare, lips pursed thoughtfully._

_"We certainly never expected her to be this determined. I almost find it arousing."_

_Unsure what to make of the odd compliment, Nikki reclined further into Gabriel's hand._

_"Though, if you try selling any part of your body again, I'll make sure you pay dearly for it."_

_"That's reassuring."_

_"I could do far worse," he continued offhandedly. "I still could."_

_Nikki didn't argue this time, fully believing that he would._

_"Since Nicole has seen the error of her ways and knows not to repeat her mistakes," Lucifer acknowledged, "you both need to be gone before I summon the demon."_

_"She's not leaving my sight."_

_Before Lucifer could argue, Gabriel snapped his fingers._

_"Where'd you send him this time?" she asked._

_"An underground mine in South Africa. He'll be pissed," the archangel snickered. "Ah, well. He's always had issues with handling disobedience."_

_"That's putting it mildly," Lucifer inserted. "If you would follow his lead, brother?"_

_"Don't sugarcoat it," Gabriel stated dramatically, though there was a restless grin tugging at his lips. "Nikki, this is gonna sound like some shady advice, but I need you to trust Lucifer."_

_"But...my soul...I don't want this contract broken."_

_Both archangels stared at her for a long moment._

_"This is one of those times, dear child, that what you want isn't going to matter," Lucifer confessed. "For as imperial as he is, Michael is right. You are ours."_

_She turned to the angel beside her._

_"Gabriel, there's got to be another way out."_

"At this point, I think I wasn't above begging," Nikki admitted.

_"Nikki, sweet thing, I like you a crazy amount. And I know we're gonna have to start being a little more accommodating for you, but Lucifer and Michael are right. Your soul and our graces are five peas in a pod. I'm not giving you up. Ever. Especially not to hell when you deserve the puffy clouds in the sky."_

"That's kinda romantic," Mia observed.

"Yeah, yeah, you're all probably aww-ing at home. And I guess looking back on it, he did say that last part to comfort me. But, at the time, they had all basically unanimously declared ownership of me and there was nothing I could do to change that. Not exactly a romantic thought."

"Say no more." She paused. "Was being alone with Lucifer, intimidating?"

"It should have been, but I think it was the sigil at work. For as much as the angels were able to make me nervous, I was never legitimately terrified of them. Once Gabriel had left, I thought maybe that fear would creep in. This was Satan, after all. But, he was surprisingly...curious? I don't know if that's the right word."

_"Ignore them. They're being difficult because of the bond."_

_Nikki sat rigidly with eyes trained down to her lap as the bright white tips of Lucifer's wings brushed warmly across her shoulders._

_"I can't believe this is happening to me," she mumbled to herself. "Where did I go wrong?"_

_"Oh, is my poor human sulking?"_

_She glanced up, only to see a mock pout gracing his lips._

_"Bite me," Nikki gritted out._

_"How tempting. Will you hold me responsible for what happens afterwards?"_

_"When my knee is buried in your crotch, absolutely."_

_"So willful," he tsked. "You're going to enjoy sharing a bed with me. It is your nature to addict yourself to carnality."_

_Raising a brow, Nikki scooted backwards a bit, unsure how to handle the seductive lull in his voice. Satan tempting humanity? Yeah, the Bible wasn't so far off on that._

_However, any further movement was prevented by his wings, which were insistent on making sure she didn't gather too much distance from him._

_"Uncomfortable?" he inquired innocently, taking a step toward her._

"To this day, I'll maintain it was the sigil," she defended. "No way I'd have had such a physical response to him so soon."

"So...he wasn't a good flirt?"

"He was _ridiculously_ conceited."

_"Shouldn't we be summoning Lynn?"_

_Lucifer ignored her anxiety, covering the remaining steps between them._

_With his wings blocking her ability to bolt around him, Nikki was forced to focus on how close he was getting. Her heartbeat, on its own accord, sped up, though she didn't exactly know why._

_Finally, he stopped just short of their knees touching._

_"I'm not going to hurt you," he assured lowly, one hand hovering beside her cheek._

_Swallowing painfully, Nikki kept her gaze focused on her lap._

_"Don't-."_

_"-what?" he finished, brushing a thumb across her cheek. "What are you afraid I'll do to you?"_

_The manner in which he asked the question made Nikki look up, feeling somewhat perplexed._

_"Why am I getting the feeling we're not talking about physical pain?"_

_Lucifer tilted his head thoughtfully._

_"Absent parents are shameful. Neglectful ones are nearly worse."_

_Widening her eyes, Nikki jerked away from his touch, pushing hastily against his wings._

_"You son of a bitch."_

_"I don't wish to hate you," came his explanation, following her retreat. "And it's only natural I would learn every detail of your life. You should not fear me. There is a kindredness about you that my brothers and I recognize."_

"Could you elaborate on what he meant?"

Rubbing the back of her neck, Nikki slowly nodded, though her smile was long gone.

"There's this whole belief that having rich parents automatically guarantees an easy and happy life. Take me, for instance. I went to a private school, I had my own cooks, I could afford surgery when I was just a kid without whopping hospital bills. Unfortunately, it's not mentioned that the lives aren't always spic and span even if you have the wealth."

"I'm to guess your parents weren't around as much as they could have been?"

Nikki laughed, but there wasn't much humor in it.

"I saw them twelve hours a week, if I was lucky. There was a driver to take me to and from school each day. If I needed help with homework, I'd stay late at school with a tutor. They were the only way I could pass a class I wasn't good in. The people who cooked my food...I knew more about them than I did my own mother. And the spinal fusion surgery I had when I was eight because of my messed up back? Our nanny stayed with me at the hospital for five days while I went through physical therapy and received my food through an IV. Dad was in Athens at the time and Mom was hosting a ten year anniversary for some friends of hers in Paris. She claimed she'd been preparing it for weeks and couldn't possibly bail out. When they got back and saw me wearing the back brace, they'd forgotten why I had it on in the first place."

"Oh, Nik-."

"No, it's alright," she assured softly, holding up a hand. "I mean I had privileged opportunities thrown my way that not many are entitled to, didn't I? So, that should cancel out the distant relationship with my parents. I mean...the house I lived in before I was angel-napped...my parents bought that for me my first year of college. They were disappointed I wasn't going to a university, but still provided for me regardless. It'd be insane to be critical of that!"

Mia considered her interviewee for a few seconds before speaking.

"Lucifer must have picked up on something to consider your soul kindred to his grace."

"There may have been a bit of neglect and that might have been God's sense of humor at work - the neglected girl who liked to talk a lot and the sons of an absent Father - finding each other. Match made in...well, you know. But, it wasn't anything more."

_"It's none of your business."_

_"From here on out, everything you do, say, or think, will be my business," he expressed, fingers idly playing with a strand of her dark brunette hair. "Our business. Funny that I should have to share you. Admittedly, it's not an outcome I'm overly pleased with. And I am tempted to steal you away and figure you out for myself."_

_She bit down on every disagreeable comment stewing inside her, allowing him to gently pull her up by the elbows._

_"However, you are already attached to Gabriel. What has my baby brother done to warrant your attentions?"_

_"Besides treating me with respect?"_

_"What a peculiar request," he murmured, lips nearer to her forehead than she'd have liked. "Assure me that you'll never try giving your soul away to someone else and I will give you the respect Gabriel does."_

_"Is this a ploy?"_

_"Suspicious of me already?"_

"Lucifer is cold, by the way." Nikki revealed promptly. "Body temp, breath, and everything else short of his organs."

_"Yes."_

_"Don't be. I have nothing to gain."_

_She wasn't sure if it was disconcerting or not that she believed him._

_"Fine," Nikki agreed, not really seeing any other option left. "Just don't treat me like Michael does."_

_"That should be relatively simple."_

_Unexpectedly, his index finger slipped beneath her chin, tilting her face up._

_"You kissed the demon on the mouth?"_

_"Can't have a pact without it. Or so she said."_

"He kissed you!" Mia filled in excitedly.

"Even you saw it coming before I did. Damn," she marveled, shaking her head. "Yes, he kissed me. Short and more to wipe away the old deal I'd made with Lynn. Now that I think about it, she was the last person I'd kissed outside of the five angels I'm connected to. Over two years ago."

"Well, that stands for something, right?"

"Yes. They're unnaturally territorial and if a man's mouth so much as approaches my face, it's like an alarm goes off. This caused an issue between an angel who came to the house once. His name was Samandriel and he was still getting used to his vessel. While we waited for Michael, we talked and sort of became friendly in a friends _only_ sort of way. And it was still in a friendly sort of way that I caught him after he tripped over the carpet. Which I thought was a good thing, but apparently our mouths were too close together. That was not a happy day and they basically scared him from ever visiting again."

"Oh, that's not healthy."

"My only defense for them is that we'd all been together for over a year and the longer we stayed in each other's presence, the stronger the bond got. Bu, that's still not an excuse to ban someone from a house."

"I fully agree. By this logic, I'm to assume Lucifer's kiss was nothing more than a-."

"-ploy? Yes. But, he actually did keep his promise afterwards. About trying to respect me more. Sort of."

"And he severed the contract with Lynn?"

"Yes. That was a particularly disturbing part. After he summoned her, she was throwing praises at him left and right. She'd never actually met him, but was a strong loyalist to his cause."

_"Whatever it is you need, it's yours, sir."_

_Nikki detected the underlying sexual implication in Lynn's words, but was curious if Lucifer could._

_"That's not why I called you. You made a pact with this human?"_

_Lynn, for what appeared to be the first time, properly took a look at her._

_"I did."_

_"I want the pact nullified."_

_Now, her surprise was easier to read._

_"Why? She made the deal-."_

_"Are you in a position to question the orders of your creator?"_

_Hesitating, Lynn eventually shook her head, glancing between the two of them._

_"Don't make me ask twice."_

_"Sir, respectfully, the contract is magically bound. The King of Hell needs to approve-."_

_"The King of Hell? I wasn't aware I shared my position with another."_

_The demon bit her tongue._

_"Give me the original contract," Lucifer ordered._

_Frowning underneath his dead stare, Lynn finally nodded, swiping her hand through the air._

_"What do you want me to tell the Kin-I mean...Crowley?"_

_Accepting the document, Lucifer unceremoniously dragged Nikki to his side, grabbing one of her hands._

_"This will sting temporarily."_

_With no preamble, Lucifer sliced a cut across her palm, fairly shallow, but enough to draw a significant amount of blood. The sting only caught up when he collected some of the blood with a finger and wiped it at the very bottom of the contract where the signatures resided._

_Staring curiously at the contract, Nikki didn't notice when Lucifer's thumb skimmed over the cut again, healing the bleeding wound._

_"Now yours," he redirected, focusing his attention on the demon._

_Lynn was watching them both carefully, but upon the archangel's gaze on her, quickly cut open her hand as well and offered it to him._

_"I can't be sure this will work-."_

_"I have no reason to impose on the King of Hell and his policies regarding crossroad pacts," Lucifer mentioned with a fair amount of sarcasm. "But there are loopholes even he isn't aware of regarding these pacts. I don't have the patience to deal with him, so this will have to suffice."_

_It took a few seconds before the writing on the contract began to fade from black to a crimson, then back to black. At the bottom, Nikki noticed the absence of her name._

_"Show me the sigil."_

_Pulling down her t-shirt, she glanced at the mark. A__ faint, light blue could be seen overriding the disappearing black. A second later and it returned back to a sinewy pale._

_"You're one of the angels bonded to her," Lynn snarled, understanding striking her._

_Not a second later and she was engulfed in sapphire flames._

_Her death occurred so quickly that all Nikki saw was her open mouth ready to release a scream before she erupted into ashes and smoke. Whatever Lucifer had done to her, it definitely hadn't been painless._

_More flames were conjured, this time, for the contract._

_"Did you have to kill her?"_

_"Sympathy for the demon?"_

_At first, Nikki couldn't figure out what about the death bothered her. That is until she looked at the being who caused it._

_"It's effortless for you, isn't it? We're just used for however long you need us."_

_Lucifer took a few seconds to find an answer he approved of._

_"They are," he agreed. "Not you."_

"That's probably when I realized he was beginning to see me as separate from humanity."

"We'll have more after the break," Mia promised.

Once the camera, stopped rolling, Nikki went over everything she'd discussed so far and what she still planned to say.

"I'm making them seem too nice."

"You've still got the rest of the show, Velma. Don't worry."

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><p><strong>What's to come next chapter? Possibly what living in Nikki's new home is like as well as the revelation of another angel whose grace is intertwined with her soul. Man, Michael's gotta give her a little respect. Do as Gabriel does. Though, being the oldest, it might take a while to catch on that disobedience doesn't mean getting so angry that you break windows and send defenseless lawyers flying onto beds. And yeah, fortune and wealth can be everything, but with parents who sometimes forget you exist, growing up can be a bit rough. Let me know your thoughts in a review!<strong>


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry about the lateness of the chapter. It's been a crazy week with essays and midterms. Since I've been making a habit of it, I'm going to try and upload one chapter a week. Hopefully two, if I have the time. Once more, thank you for your beautiful, wondrous reviews! This is a ridiculous story, so it means a lot that you guys are giving it a chance. I have to admit that descriptions aren't a strong talent of mine, so I apologize for the crap way I handled the description of the house. That's on me. Otherwise, I hope you enjoy!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 6 - Interview Part #5: Leashes, Peaches, &amp; Other Worldly Creatures<strong>

"Um, is Miss Rathje still on break?"

Alex looked up from his clipboard.

"They'll be back on air in four minutes. What do you need, Simon?"

Simon, a nervous, twitchy fellow who normally worked with finances at the studio on the upper level floor, hesitantly lifted a phone.

"She's got someone on the line."

This caught Kolab's attention.

"One can only imagine who it is," he offered mischievously.

Alex sighed levelly before accepting the phone.

"Hello?"

There was no response on the other end. Only dull static.

"Nicole willingly offered to be interviewed," he began, figuring he should break the ice first.

"Take down the wards around the building...or we will destroy it."

Blinking, Alex brought the phone closer to his ear, turning away from the eyes on him.

"Nicole is inside the building," he reminded.

He heard yelling, but it wasn't directed at him.

"Of course he's not going to believe you! Sometimes, I can't believe Dad made you first. Give it to me."

Waiting patiently, Alex scanned his clipboard again. One foot softly began tapping against the floor.

"This is Gabriel," the man on the other line suddenly spoke. "Could you let me speak to Nikki?"

Straightening his shoulders, Alex stared ahead. On one hand, he didn't want to anger the probably already incensed angels. On the other, he wanted Nicole feeling safe and unburdened. Where was the middle ground between that?

"I'm sorry, Gabriel, but Nicole specifically requested not to be interrupted during the interview."

"Look, buddy, we're her-."

"-friends," Alex ended pointedly. "Only her friends. If you didn't catch the beginning, she broke off whatever sort of relationship she shared with you all. I know it may be difficult, but you have to allow her to make her own decisions. She is a sweet, charming girl that-."

"-did the bastard just call her sweet and charming?" interrupted an unfamiliar voice.

"You better not be hitting on _our_ girlfriend," Gabriel reaffirmed.

Unable to contain his amusement, Alex questioned, "Are you all crowded around the phone?"

"Pfft...no."

"I told you there was a button so we didn't have to do this," another voice added.

Alex stifled the urge to laugh.

"Listen, Gabriel...and...others, Nicole is exercising a right none of you can take away from her. She was born a citizen of this county and is protected under the rights of the Constitution. This includes freedom of speech. Perhaps it'd be more helpful to discuss among yourselves why it is she felt the need to come on my show and do this interview in the first place. I can't speak for her, of course, but I am sure she'll reveal along the way more of what she felt."

"Cameras on in thirty," Brock shouted from the stage.

"You seem like an intelligent guy," Gabriel ventured, "but there are some details that should stay between a gal and her angels. I get we might have coveted her in a way Dad himself would think was unhealthy. We knew about how lonely and left out she felt throughout most of her life and we wanted to make sure she never felt that way again. Plus, we all took a natural liking to her, so that probably kept us a lot more invested in her than normal. But, there's a sigil connecting her to all of us that no human laws can null. At the end of the day, she belongs to us."

Pursing his lips, he debated how to seal the conversation. He may very well become a target after it.

"Your last sentence," Alex disclosed politely. "It should be '_with_' instead of 'to'."

He pressed _end call _before they could threaten him some more.

"Poetic," Kolab approved upon his return to the demon's side.

"Common sense," he corrected. "I can see where Nicole struggled to remain true to herself. They are...intense."

Their attention snapped to the stage as Mia welcomed back the audience.

"-now, where does one go from here? Lucifer broke the contract on your soul and killed the crossroads demon. Michael was furious with you, Gabriel unwilling to agree that you should be apart from them. How did you move past that?"

Nikki mulled over how she wanted to answer the question. They took control of her life pretty damn fast.

"It probably started when they showed me the house."

"Yes, you mentioned a house! Where was it?"

"It was...away from everything else. In the countryside, but there were these beautiful hills in the distance. If it's alright, I think I want to keep the location to myself."

"No, of course. We respect that."

Smiling in relief, Nikki relaxed in her seat.

"After Lucifer killed Lynn, he started wandering around my house. We were waiting for Gabriel to retrieve Michael. I followed him because I think I was kind of lost myself. I didn't know what was going to happen next."

_"So modest for one with astonishing wealth."_

_One of Lucifer's wings swung upward so she could catch up to his side. Though, at this point, he wasn't restricting them from randomly feeling her out._

_She wished she could say the contact was unwanted and strange, but there was a certain rightness to it that she had a hard time explaining. They were stunning in their white glow and more powerful than her imagination could conceive. _

_And yet, when making contact with her - a comforting sweep across her shoulders, a light pull on one side of her body so she could be closer to him - she felt an intimate sort of protectiveness that she'd never experienced before._

"Did only Lucifer's wings do this?"

"No," Nikki recalled. "All of their wings had this habit of randomly brushing my body or trying to get me closer to them. But, Lucifer's did it more often. I learned later on it had partially to do with his time in the cage, away from the other angels...it's...crap, they're going to kill me for saying this. In heaven, angels regularly have their wings...taken care of."

"Taken care of?" Mia inquired, one brow rising in curiosity. "How do you mean?"

"After battles, they have them groomed...there's a book on this, by the way. _A Guide to Taming Your Angel."_

"Taming your-?"

Nikki chortled at Mia's puzzled expression, hiding her grin behind a palm.

"Ironically," she revealed cheerily, "the book was written by one of the three others like me. The ones who had sigils on them and were eventually found by their angel. The author wrote down their own experiences with his angel. Finding the book was extremely difficult and Gabriel ensured that I could never get my hands on it again once he found out I had it."

"Was it harmful?"

Fighting back another laugh, Nikki cleared her throat, unsure where to train her gaze.

"Let's just say I learned some really..._stimulating_ things in there."

"Oh...**oh** my."

"Yes. Hopefully you can fill in the blanks on that one." She paused, regaining composure once more. "So, I learned that they have their wings groomed almost regularly and that being near other graces keeps the wings strong and lively. Since Lucifer had been in the cage for so long, away from his brothers and sisters, his wings were a bit...he's going to kill me for this...but...starved, I guess. Just being near Michael and Gabriel, made them healthier. And because my soul was entwined with his grace, I became a source of that comfort too."

"Aww, that's..."

"We got off topic," Nikki declared, heat rising in her cheeks. "Sorry about that."

"Yes, my apologies. Go on."

_"What's going to happen from here? With me, I mean. Are you going to...hurt me?"_

_Lucifer slowly turned to her, stopping in the middle of her hallway._

_"Is that what you want?"_

_"No, but Michael-."_

_"He'd endure heaven's tortures before harming you. Though, his anger is annoying, isn't it? Little room for understanding and an insufferable stubbornness. Watching you both argue is amusing."_

_She rolled her eyes at that, passing him on the way to the kitchen._

_"Once they return, we're taking you with us," he told her._

_Nikki continued walking, but she could hear him follow._

_"And after that?"_

_"You will come to your new home with us."_

_"And you're not going to-?"_

_He appeared in front of her without warning._

_"We are beings of consent," Lucifer reminded, one hand brushing across her shoulder. "While I look forward to eventually keeping you in bed for days, it will only happen when you want it."_

"You thought they might-?"

"I know it seems ridiculous," Nikki defended. "But with what I'd seen of Michael's strength and Lucifer's ability to kill anyone who helped me...it was something that kept picking at the back of my head."

_"You don't believe me."_

_"I do, but-."_

_"You don't."_

_She didn't argue as he studied her, face completely expressionless._

_"Do you know what the punishment is for an angel who attempts to possess a human that didn't consent?"_

_When she didn't answer, he continued._

_"Their wings are clipped. Which may sound like a harmless procedure, but the wings are, in part, connected to our grace. Rip out the wings and you take a part of our grace too."_

_Nikki tried to contain her flinch at the images invading her head._

_"Also, taking your virtue without consent, assures the wings stay off. It's a peculiar sort of system. We are allowed to harm your physical self without punishment, but not your spiritual."_

_"So..."_

_"Even if I had an ounce of desire to force myself on you, I would pay consequences any angel considers worse than death," he cleared up. "Your fears are misplaced and unnecessary."_

_"You promise?"_

_Lucifer sighed with exasperation._

_"What a suspicious human you are. But if it eases your mind to hear it out loud, then yes, I promise."_

"I think that might have been the last time I worried about them hurting me," Nikki admitted. "And that whole being punished bit...it is true. From what I've learned along the way, it's only happened three times, and they were all cases of an angel trying to possess an unwilling human."

"And the wings are-?"

"I don't know all the details, but from what it sounded like, the procedure was like a surgery. And the angel is fully conscious through the whole thing."

"Ouch."

"No kidding."

"So, was that when you started trusting them a bit?"

"That...and finally seeing the house. What got me about it was the fact that they took the time to create everything and make it comfortable for me. Yeah, essentially, I'd just been angel-napped, but they were damned to make it as smooth of a transition as they could."

_"Take a look inside."_

_Nikki hugged herself tighter, glancing between Gabriel and the house._

_"It should be to your liking," Michael added from her side._

_"And if it's not, we'll destroy it and build you another," finished Lucifer._

"Wow, I'm sorry, but that's romantic."

"It's fine," Nikki accepted. "They all put aside whatever they were feeling, Michael in particular, to make sure I didn't freak. And it worked. The house was...stunning. A lot of it was just the little things. If you grow up in a wealthy home, the idea is that not a lot after that can awe you. Once you've seen one, you've seen it all. But, the angels...they did their homework, so to speak. They knew my interests and what I was passionate about and it was less about what money could buy and more of a place I could literally spend the rest of my life in. I think I loved it immediately."

"What were some of your favorite features?"

"A fully stocked library to rival that of ancient Alexandria. I used to love reading, you see, but in paralegal studies, you read so much that the joy and adventure of it slowly seeps away. So, it was nice to start again with any genre, any time period, any world you wanted. They made me love reading again. And the library, despite how inelegant this is going to sound, was the shit. Fireplace? Boom! Huge cozy alcove with blankets and pillows? Boom! Window that overlooks the hills? Boom! An entire wall dedicated to an intricate, detailed map of the world? Boom! Guess what the capital of Ethiopia is?"

Mia stared at her, mouth parted.

"Um..."

"Addis Ababa. Guess what the only two landlocked countries in South America are?"

"Eh..."

"Paraguay and Bolivia! The library was a sanctuary," she exclaimed, unable to hold back her excitement. "I used to sit in the alcove right next to the window, watching the clouds turn gray and listening to the storms sweep by. It'd be completely silent inside, unless the fire was going. You could hear the rain hit the window pane and the thunder in the distance, approaching. At night, you could see the stars clearly through the glass. Which was a great thing about living in the middle of nowhere. No pollution or lights to block out how beautiful the sky could get."

"It sounds magical. Anything else stand out to you?"

"It wasn't massive inside. No high ceilings like the house I grew up in or long, curvy stairways. It wasn't extravagant, and that's why I liked it so much. From the outside, it was a brick white mansion. A wee bit imposing, but after I asked Gabriel to add ivy onto the brick, it looked more homey. Most of the space inside was dedicated to the massive kitchen or the two dens on opposite sides of the house. There were a lot of couches. Lots of tables. Stereo in one of the dens that could belt music through the whole house."

"Anything you liked playing in particular?"

"Personally, I have a love for all 80's music. So, there was a lot of The Police and Pat Benatar and The Cure. But, I can listen to a lot of other genres too. I once tried to get Michael into The Carpenters, mainly as a joke, but he actually took a really huge liking to them. For a month straight, he played 'We've Only Just Begun' every morning. It got so out of control that Gabriel banned every Carpenters CD Michael tried to bring into the house."

"You got the archangel Michael into the Carpenters?"

The disbelief crossing Mia's face made Nikki chuckle.

"I regret it with every ounce of my being. But, it made him happy. And that was nice too."

"Apparently," she huffed in surprise. "Go on with the rest, please."

"Gabriel had this wardrobe room for...well, role playing. But not the naughty type! Sometimes, we'd go to different cities or countries and we'd pretend we were in different professions or so and so from the royal family of who and what. One time, Gabriel and I went to Monaco and managed to convince the residents of the capital that we were related to Prince Albert II. I know it sounds childish, but it was actually a lot of fun. You could go somewhere and pretend to be someone else for a little while. I never knew that would be attractive to me, doing that sorta thing, but it was."

"Hey, no judgment here."

"Thank you," she welcomed. "What else can I say about the place? There were four bathrooms. The bathrooms, by the way, had showers that could fit anywhere from one to six peop-."

Nikki suddenly paused, looking at the camera.

"Not that it was used to-I mean not always-and the..."

"It's alright," Mia soothed with a chuckle. "What happens in the shower, stays in the shower."

"Heh...erm, right, there were some awesome art pieces scattered on the walls. Lots of Van Gogh and Aivazovsky and Hokusai. The Aivazovsky threw me because I had no idea how they knew I liked his pieces. I remember seeing them when I was seven years old, in an art gallery in St. Petersburg. His ability to add emotion into the waves and the use of color during the storms...I was mesmerized. My parents left me alone in the gallery for the day, so I spent the entire time trying to remember every detail."

"Your parents left you in an art gallery the whole day?"

"I didn't mind," she insisted happily. "They were meeting up with some friends."

Mia eyed her worriedly.

"Trust me, I'd rather have spent my time in the gallery," Nikki promised. "But, seeing some of his pieces brought back that sense of wonder and nostalgia. It was a good nostalgia because that gallery in St. Petersburg was one of my favorite places I'd ever been in and...God, they just did a seriously fantastic job with arranging the place. And they said if there was anything I wanted added or more of, all I had to do was ask."

_"This is all it takes to silence her?" Michael asked._

_"Shut up," Nikki mumbled in embarrassment, trying to pry her eyes away from The Ninth Wave._

_"She appreciates it," Gabriel explained, watching her with glee. "It's enduring. It means our human isn't as selfish as we are."_

_"Selfish?" she repeated in confusion, finding his eyes. "You are **not** selfish for doing this. Arranging these paintings and the library and the kitchen and the den...I-thank you. No one's ever done anything like this for me before. It's always been because it could be imported and money wasn't an issue. But, this house...it's passion and glory and homey...well done guys. This makes it just a little bit easier."_

_"Wait til you see your bedroom!"_

"There were six bedrooms, go figure. All with the kind of beds fit for-."

"-lots of sex?"

"Well, yes. But they made sure I knew it wasn't something they expected. Sort of difficult to do when you see how spacious and big and suggestive it all looks."

_"I'll show her my room next," Lucifer motioned, leaning against the entryway. "She'll be in search of it more than either of yours."_

_"Oh, please," Gabriel scoffed, "we're going to watch so many cheesy horror films and munch on enough Skittles that she'll decide to move into my bedroom permanently."_

_Nikki couldn't stop the laugh from coming out of her even if she wanted to. It should have been a bit worrying, but the atmosphere wasn't tense or uncomfortable. She felt strangely grounded, warm, and clear headed._

_With amusement, she looked at Michael, wondering if he had anything to contribute._

_Under her gaze, Michael looked momentarily lost for words._

"He was around his brothers again," Nikki reasoned. "The bantering and contributing to a conversation without sounding menacing...it took time. Usually, he said things and his garrison did them. For awhile, he didn't know how to joke."

_"I have a leash."_

_Gabriel exploded into a fit of laughter while Lucifer stared at him doubtfully._

_"And I assumed I was the sadist in the family."_

_"I don't mean for you," he elaborated, brows pushed together in thought as a light shade of red crept over his cheeks. "For the cat."_

_Unsure how to react, Nikki stayed rooted in place, observing him cautiously._

_"Gabriel," Michael snapped, glaring at his laughing brother, "you said Nicole liked cats."_

_"There's a cat here?" she wondered, looking around._

_"It sounded like the leash was for her," Gabriel interpreted, wiping at his eyes. "Subtlety, big bro, is not your thing."_

_"Why would I put Nicole on a leash? Other than making sure she doesn't stray, she doesn't resemble-."_

_"Hey," Nikki interrupted crossly._

_"It's a sexual kink," Lucifer provided. "Though, I see Gabriel as more deserving of it than Nikki."_

_"Hey!" Gabriel protested._

_"Gabriel said you've had cats in your old home before," Michael interjected, his frustration showing in the way his wings arched upwards. "If you should want one again, I have a leash."_

_"Why would I need a leash for the cat?"_

_"I have seen dogs with leashes. Are cats not kept on leashes as well?"_

_"No."_

_Michael's wings folded back slightly as the redness in his cheeks grew darker._

_"I have a leash," he repeated, attempting to maintain his dignity, "if you ever decide you want to use it, I have it."_

"It's one thing to observe humanity, but being a part of it...well, for angels, some of the customs get lost in translation. Gabriel was good at it. He'd been living among humans for centuries. Lucifer didn't have too many problems. He learned a lot from reading. But Michael...some things confused him to the point where you'd forget he was God's first angel. It wasn't annoying, though. Actually, I found it a relief from all the times he was a controlling dick. Like, for example, the house rules."

"House rules?"

"They were a list of three rules I had to follow," Nikki relayed, shaking her head. "It was crap. But, apparently, they all agreed on them."

_"One, you are to not leave the house without at least one of us to accompany you."_

_"I am a grown woman."_

_Michael scanned you blankly. "You may be, yes. Unfortunately, your sense of judgment doesn't reflect that-."_

"-he was definitely still pissed about the crossroads demon debacle-"

_"-so, until you regain that trust, you'll be under our watch."_

_"Gabriel?"_

_The archangel frowned. "Sorry, Nikki-pie, but I kinda agree."_

_Nikki deflated, falling back into the sofa._

_"Two, we will allow you to visit friends, family, and anyone else you wish, but no one can know what we are and why we are important to you. In this case, secrecy is very important. If you must, lie."_

_"I...guess that's okay. I'll have to call up a friend from school to be my date to the dinner my parents have every year."_

_"One of us will go," Michael assured._

_"Um, that's not a good idea. The moment you become important in my life, my relatives will want to know everything about you. These dinners can be brutal because they judge you on everything from your table manners to the type of fabric your tuxedo is made up of. Yes, I said tuxedo. My aunt has been known to even scope out anyone we bring to dinner by doing her own investigating. I'm bringing someone else."_

_Michael looked like he wanted to argue, but instead, said, "We'll discuss the dinner at a later time."_

_"Does this mean I can't invite people to the house?"_

_"What sort of people?" Michael demanded._

_"Friends, colleagues, boyfriends."_

_"Maybe, not likely, and no."_

"They didn't want you inviting men to the house?"

Nikki scratched her chin, figuring out how to phrase what she wanted to say.

"No, not...really. They assumed that I could maintain my contacts from the confines of the house. And that when I went out, they needed to personally be there if my friends were male. It was pretty damn annoying, but I wasn't the kind of person who dated a lot anyway. So, I probably should have fought it a bit more, but realistically, it didn't affect me all that much.

However, there was one time on April Fool's Day that I told them I was going to elope with a former classmate of mine named Eddy. He's still a good friend to this day. As aforementioned, it took Michael a while to understand human customs. I also made the mistake of playing this prank when all of us were more...intimate with each other. Short story version, I couldn't get out of the house. Locks wouldn't work, windows wouldn't break, and the secret door in the library that led underneath the house to an abandoned church four miles away, was sealed off."

"Are you serious?" Mia gasped.

"Deadly. I mean, obviously, I wouldn't have done it. Whether I wanted to admit it or not, I pretty much loved them at this point. But, that whole romantic bond between all of us...it was deep and intense and not something I had the chance to escape from by then. Literally."

"I'm afraid to ask, but what was the third rule?"

At this, Nikki smiled.

_"Three, if there is anything troubling you, you must tell us. As frustrated as you may be by the situation you find yourself in, you need to understand that our desire is to protect you and make sure you are never neglected, lost, or unwanted again."_

_Michael's voice softened just the tiniest bit at the very end of the declaration and it made Nikki realize they probably knew the details of a great deal of her life._

_"I don't need the attention," she maintained._

_"No, but we want to give it to you regardless. You, above all of humanity, are most worthy of it."_

"I still don't quite believe that, but they did, so I didn't really argue," Nikki recalled. "To make sure rule number three was being followed, they took to asking me how I was feeling. Usually Michael or Gabriel. Lucifer really wasn't the type to ask, though he did listen if I ever talked. It was odd, being asked about my emotions. Usually, I kept them to myself and poured all my focus into school."

"They wouldn't let you go back?"

"Michael, who I was starting to think loved pissing me off, said I never needed to work again because everything would be provided to me. Two years later and I still argue with him about it. He thinks something bad will happen to me without them around. Or that I'll pay more attention to my studies and eventually decide to move away. It's such a ridiculous argument that part of me is on this interview because of it. I mean, now that I'm single, I have every right to go back to school."

"You do," Mia concurred. "I'm sorry you had to give that up."

"Thank you. It's weird to hear someone agree with me."

"I'd like to ask...are all angels as controlling as Michael?"

Nikki pursed her lips, eyeing the ceiling for a moment.

"No...they're not. Though, in Michael's defense, it's a difficult habit to break when he was expected to lead heaven's army. And honestly, when compared to some, he's definitely not the worst. Ironically, that's how I met the fourth angel I was soul buddies with."

"He was worse?"

"No, no," Nikki disagreed, shaking her head, "he wasn't worse. It was those he was surrounded by...well, let me try to explain it as best as I can."

Mia nodded acceptingly.

"About a week after I started to get settled into the house, Michael announced that he was holding a rally of sorts. A whole bunch of heaven's angels would be on Earth in a top secret gathering. It was sort of a 'hey, we're not all battling, let's relax and hang out' sort of thing. Though, it was also to have me scope out the other angels there. Michael tried inviting as many as he could so we could find the other two who were part of our weird bond. Not everyone showed up, of course. But it was a good turn out and allowed me to see just what sort of creatures humanity prayed to."

"It must have been strange for them to see Lucifer again."

"Ah, well, Lucifer didn't actually...attend. For that reason exactly. Not all of them were as forgiving as Michael and Gabriel and if he did show up, I'm almost positive there would have been blood shed. Some of Michael's garrison tried to convince him to resume the apocalypse. They really, really wanted Lucifer dead."

"So, it was you, Michael, and Gabriel?"

"Lucifer wanted to go, but he knew it was best he stayed back. Gabriel only went because he knew Michael would be flocked with attention and wouldn't always be able to keep an eye on me. I think he greatly underestimated how many of his family members would want to talk to him too. See, Gabriel left everyone behind because of the fighting going on after God left. So, his appearance at the shindig was a pretty big deal."

_"I'll be back. Keep a look out," Michael commanded._

_Nikki nodded, internally relieved to see a group of angels waving him over._

_Beside her, Gabriel mentioned, "You know, if you want, we can skedaddle and go to an arcade."_

_"Seriously?" she mumbled, gazing up at him._

_"Damn...I want to say yes, but now that I think about it, Michael might actually kill me."_

_"It'd be worth it. I feel so awkward here."_

_"Don't worry. Michael warned most of the angels beforehand not to harm or question you."_

_"I don't know if that makes me feel better or worse."_

_"A lot of them are curious about you. Zachariah hasn't stopped eyeballing you since you walked in."_

_"I really don't like him."_

_"Neither does Mikey. That whole touching you thing in Montana, really didn't go over well with him. Oh, hey, there's Jophiel! Wow, she's really let herself go."_

_Nikki snorted into her water as Gabriel pulled her into his side, bright grin in place._

_"I'm feeling just as awkward as you are," he guaranteed helpfully._

_"You can go talk to them if you want," she insisted after taking a normal sip. "I'm sure they miss you."_

_"Nah, I like you more. Plus," he paused, nose hovering near her ear, "you've got something peachy on your skin that's making me really want to lick you."_

_"Shampoo, I think. Be forewarned, though. Men have told me I'm bitter on both the inside and outside."_

_"Mm, I'll think I'll be the judge of that."_

_His flirtatiousness was beginning to get dangerous, she realized. Dangerous because he was really, really good at it and because her insides were responding to it in the same way that they responded when she first watched Edward Norton bare it all in American History X. She'd need to keep a firm lock on that feeling. Left unguarded and who knew what could happen._

_"Gabriel?"_

_Gabriel straightened up beside her, arm slowly removing itself from her shoulder._

_"Ambriel?"_

_The blonde-haired woman's smile made something powerful stir in Nikki's heart._

_"I'll be by the plants," Nikki indicated, placing a comforting hand on Gabriel's shoulder._

_"I need to-."_

_"-talk to your family. I'll be by the plants, keeping a look out."_

_"Nikki-."_

_"Gabriel, talk. You need this. Stop saying you don't."_

_They kept eye contact for a few seconds before Gabriel kissed her on the forehead. "I'll only be a few minutes."_

_"Take your time."_

_She drifted backwards as Ambriel wrapped him into a hug that he gladly, if not a bit tentatively, accepted._

"Ambriel wasn't the only one glad to see him. Over the course of twenty minutes or so, the circle surrounding Gabriel got bigger and bigger. It was emotional to watch because you could tell how many of them missed him by the way they lowered their guard. I mean when we first got there, everyone looked stern and angry and ready for apocalypse, round number two. But seeing Michael and Gabriel together...seeing Gabriel in general...it was like they could relax for the first time in...I don't even know how long."

"I hate to ask for fear of ruining the moment, but were any of the angels you observed, part of your bond?"

"Nope. Which was strange because Michael invited nearly all of heaven and I had to have seen a good few hundred angels come and go. We were on the ground level of a hotel and there were miniature groups scattered in hallways and different rooms. I decided, after chugging down six glasses of water, that after finding the bathroom, I could maybe wander through some hallways and try to find some on my own. Michael and Gabriel looked like they might be occupied for awhile with the amount of angels wanting to talk to them."

"And how did the search go?"

"A little awkward because I was practically holding it in. I tried nearly every door, but kept finding myself in a closet. How many closets do ground floors have?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I meant the search for the fourth angel."

"My bad," Nikki apologized. "Right, initially, not so well. I had to have wandered for a good half hour without seeing wings. And in order to look for wings, I had to look at the angel. Some of them weren't so receptive to the glances. And very few spoke to me. I wasn't sure if it was on Michael's order or because I was human. One did stop to talk to me, though, and she was nice."

_"Nicole Rathje, what an honor. I'm Naomi."_

_Nikki absorbed the woman before shaking her hand with a nervous smile._

_"Michael is rather captivated by you," she followed up._

_"Is he? He threatened to put me on a leash once."_

_Naomi barked out a laugh at this._

_"Yes, well, he does enjoy his order."_

_"How do you deal with it?"_

_She looked surprised by the question, but it didn't stop her expression from growing pensive._

_"I take a deep breath and go somewhere peaceful."_

_"And if he doesn't allow you to do that?"_

_"I believe you humans have a novelty liquid known as alcohol?"_

_"That's...actually a good idea. Thank you."_

_"Always happy to help. Thank you as well."_

_"For what?"_

_The woman looked around at her surroundings, a light smile in place._

_"This."_

_Nikki didn't understand, but she nodded regardless._

"What did she mean?"

"If I'm reading into it correctly, she was one of the angels who didn't want the apocalypse to go down. By the whole "this" thing, I think she meant the reunion of her family. Though, I could be wrong. She walked away before I could ask her. I thought about following, but I picked up on some shouting in a room further down the hall and curiosity got the best of me."

_"-insult to our kind."_

_For a moment, Nikki debated on whether she should keep going. She was a human and if there was indeed an argument happening that consisted of angels, she had no right to be a part of it._

_However, the voices were growing louder and angrier. She felt just as wrong walking away from it._

_Exhaling deeply and with a fair amount of reluctance, she continued forward, ears able to pick up on the words better._

_"You are debasing yourself by living among the humans. Have you no honor?"_

_"Oh, you're going to teach me about honor, Ralphy? This should be good!"_

_Nikki hesitated outside the open door. What could she do even if she did make herself present?_

_"Do not speak to me as if I am equal to you. Know your place."_

_The voice held authority, but was strangely quiet. She silently hoped the individual who was goading him would stop. There was an uncomfortable level of threat in his tone._

_"My place? Are you going to remind me of that?"_

_"You should be attending to your duties in heaven," a woman spoke up, voice just as deceivingly calm. "Continue on this path and you will be worse than Castiel."_

_"Love, you wound me. No, actually, I lied, you didn't. That's a pretty damn good compliment, though. Thank you."_

_Unable to keep her curiosity at bay at the angel's recklessness, Nikki slipped into the room._

_Before her stood six angels, all with their backs to her, gathered together around in a semi-circle. Nikki tip toed a few steps to the left so she could see the angel they were threatening, but there wasn't a need to because in a split second, she saw all she needed to see._

"His wings were smaller than an archangel's, but just as beautiful," Nikki recalled. "A rich, coffee brown color with slightly lighter, gray tips. The darkness of them kind of threw me off because I'd begun to assume all angels had bright wings. Not this one, though."

"Good thing you decided to go in there," Mia approved.

"That's debatable. I might have actually made the situation worse."

_She wasn't sure what to do upon seeing the man's wings arc upwards, then lower slightly and pull into his back. Lucifer, Michael, and Gabriel had never done that before and it looked oddly submissive. Like he was nervous. A stark contrast to his behavior._

_"If you go the same path Castiel has, we will, whether Michael commands it or not, strike you down."_

_"Strike me down?" the man laughed, emanating an extraordinary confidence despite the meekness of his wings. "It's not so big a secret that Michael and Lucifer have reconciled. And last I heard, Gabriel's in the building. Far as I know, Michael's not going to like the peace being disturbed."_

_"Michael lost focus of the mission when he kept alive the human whore. He is not equipped to lead heaven."_

_"And you are? Blimey, Raphael, you let the angel of bloody Thursday trap you inside holy oil! Doubtful you could command heaven, much less tie your shoe."_

_His insult sent a rupture of activity through the room. All five angels, with the exception of who she assumed to be Raphael, leaned forward threateningly. At least from her view, it looked threatening. And despite knowing the danger of the situation, Nikki kept venturing forward._

_Her new angel was brave, but an idiot. A brave idiot. Huh. Definitely added a new flavor to the mix._

_"Balthazar, I am showing you mercy. Do not try my patience or my hand. Stand down, return to your duties in heaven, and we will forget this. Disobey and I will kill you."_

_Still undetected, Nikki continued tip-toeing, only inches away from the group. Her heart was hammering so fast that she had a difficult time breathing. Her primary thought was, 'God, please do not let this brave idiot get himself killed'._

_"Yeah, not keen on that choice," the angel decided, backing up a bit himself as his brown-gray wings flew up defensively. "You kill me and you'll be a bigger bastard than Uriel was."_

_"You have made your choice," Raphael imparted, hand suddenly equipped with a silver looking blade. "And by your choice, you will die."_

_She sprang forward without thought, body squeezing through a narrow gap between two broad-shoulder angels. There was a momentary flurry of activity as everyone turned to her while she ungracefully stopped in a front of Balthazar, eyes first shooting to his wings, then to his face._

_"She's human," a voice called from behind her._

_Mutely, Nikki spun around, making sure to stay in front of the blonde angel._

_"You don't touch him unless you go through me," she said steadily, arms rising protectively despite how badly they were shaking._

"It was brave of you," Mia supported.

"It was stupid," Nikki denied. "They easily had the ability to kill me a thousand times over. I wasn't thinking."

"And yet, you still did what you did."

"It's because...they were going to hurt him. They knew they were. I knew they were. Balthazar knew they were. And I...really hated that idea. For as much as I brushed off the whole grace-soul bond, I can't deny there was something inside me that was physically repulsed and terrified by the idea of seeing someone I was connected to, suffer. I might not have known Balthazar that long, but I wasn't going to watch him get tortured. Maybe get tortured before him, or beside him, but not after."

_"I'm uh, well, frankly flattered, darling," the blonde spoke from behind her, "but we've got a pissed off archangel and his fiercest fighters against us. Unless you've got some magic plan I don't know about, I'd suggest getting the hell out of the way while you still can."_

_"This...is the plan," Nikki relayed uncertainly. "Keeping you safe."_

_Balthazar's next words were interrupted when Raphael marched forward._

_"Out of the way or I will not be held responsible for my actions. Michael's whore or not, I won't hesitate to kill you."_

_"I'm not a whore."_

_That was the only statement she managed to release before Raphael struck her solidly across the face, sending her flying across the room. She landed with a painful thud on the other side, already able to taste blood._

_A lot of it._

"Oh my God."

"It startles you at first because you forget for a moment that they are unnaturally strong."

_Winching at the pounding in her cheek, Nikki tried picking herself off the floor, mouth moving in silent protest. But that only made the pain sharper and ignited a vicious ache in her jaw that made her body slump back down into a growing pool of her own blood. Gingerly, she moved a finger to her cheek, only to freeze as she made contact with bone that definitely wasn't supposed to be that far outside her skin._

"I'm sorry and I know I'm supposed to be unbiased as an interviewer," Mia rapidly spoke, "but what a...jerk!"

"Couldn't have said it any better myself. Well, if I could say anything."

"Please tell me Raphael didn't hurt Balthazar."

"He was close, but help came at the last moment," Nikki reassured.

_"Drop your blade, Raphael."_

_Nikki blinked with her good eye, lip curving up despite the pain. This may very well be the first time she'd ever been happy to hear Michael's voice. And oh was it a low, cold voice. The kind of voice you really, really didn't want to be on the receiving end of._

_"Help the girl he nearly killed," Balthazar demanded, unsure if he should move from his place since he was still surrounded._

"They didn't know I was in the room until Gabriel spotted me," she clarified. "After that, I'm told things got very, very volatile. Michael didn't kill Raphael only because it took nearly the entire room to hold him back."

_"Nikki?"_

_She raised a hand, feeling Gabriel's two warm ones immediately wrap around it. Delicately, he helped turn her over onto her back. She tried to speak, to tell him about Balthazar's importance, but all that came out was more blood and unintelligible garbles._

_"Shh, just stay quiet," he eased, fingers touching the surface of her skin._

_The warmth felt pleasant when it passed through her, retrieving the bone outside her cheek into its previous place while her jaw hinged itself back into position. Mere seconds passed by before the blood disappeared and she was able to see clearly through both eyes again._

_"You're awesome," she muttered lazily, moving her jaw experimentally._

_Gabriel pulled her into his body, one arm refusing to budge from behind her._

_"You scared the shit outta me," he mumbled into her hair._

_The vulnerability in his voice made her smile. Not because she liked hearing it, but because he cared enough to display it. She couldn't remember the last time she'd made someone care that much._

_"Raphael did this to you?"_

_Nikki looked over Gabriel's shoulder, only to see Michael clutching the front of Raphael's shirt, staring at her with an icy casualness. In her head, she deemed it his murder face. The latter archangel was on his knees with a bleeding nose. And slowly but surely, more angels were filing into the room while the five who previously stood beside Raphael, had two angels from Michael's garrison on each side of them._

_"It was my fault," Balthazar interrupted. "The girl was only trying to help. I should have protected her better."_

_"Your wings wouldn't have blocked him in time and even if they tried, he would've ripped through them," she said softly, meeting his eyes. "I like the color of your wings, by the way, so that would have been a loss to see them in such a shape. Also, Raphael lied when he said he was going to kill you. You're close to...whatever angel it was you were discussing that went off a different path. He was going to use you to get to him."_

_She didn't flinch when every pair of eyes in the room fell to her._

_"Raphael kept rotating his wrist and tugged at his jeans four times," she pointed out with a half shrug. "Common tactics in the court room to let you know when an inexperienced lawyer is lying. By the way, my name is Nikki."_

_Balthazar didn't say anything, though there was suddenly great interest in his face._

_"And I think, my brave idiot, that you'll be interested in the sigil I have on my skin."_

_Not even a second later and she slumped into unconsciousness, mind overwhelmed by the rapid energy-pain-healing cycle she'd been through in the past few minutes._

"We'll be back after the break!" Mia announced.

"Damn, woman, you'll defend your angels, won't you?" Brock complimented.

"I...guess so."

She couldn't really deny his point, though it didn't feel nearly as significant as they were making it sound.

"Did we skip over a commercial break?"

"That was the gap I was telling everyone about," Alex answered from the side of the stage. "We couldn't get any commercials in that five minute time slot."

"I'm glad," Mia continued, eyes falling to Nikki, "because that was fucking awesome!"

"Wait until you hear how Lucifer reacted," she muttered tiredly. "That was fun to experience."

"Sarcasm?" Brock inquired.

"The bleakest, deepest sarcasm imaginable," she promised.

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><p><strong>Oh, well, hey, Balthazar makes four! Of course not everyone's going to like Nikki either. Part of me understands Raphael. <strong>Also, if you ever get the chance to look up some of Aivazovsky's pieces, please do! He's one of my favorite artists who has an incredible talent for marine-based paintings. Otherwise, let <strong>****me know your thoughts in a review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**I apologize for the long wait and I'm awed and thankful at all the new people who've discovered this story. Thank you everyone so much for your reviews! And for remaining patient. To the reviews I got that were posted anonymously, but weren't as nice about me not updating...I honestly don't mind because I understand where you're coming from, but next time, please, just sign in and message me privately. I'd be more than happy to tell you what's going on that's preventing me from updating. I don't upload an Author's Note on a story unless I'm planning to abandon it, so messaging me really will get you the answer that you seek. I feel bad telling you all that I was going to upload one chapter a week, but all the stuff mentioned above literally started hitting me one after the other. Luckily, I'm done with school this month (26th), so I really hope to put my full attention back to this story because I love writing it for you all. A few people inquired about what Nikki looked like and to be honest, I intentionally didn't put much detail in her physical appearance because I felt like I couldn't write it without it being one large info dump that sounds borderline Mary Sue. So, if you'd like an image in your head, look up the actress Odette Annable. Take off about five years from the actress, erase all the makeup she usually wears (mascara is an exception), add in the character traits/quirks/personality I've written, and that's basically Nikki. Hope you enjoy this next chapter!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 7 - Interview Part #6: Quintessential Conflict Chapter<strong>

"What an intense day," Mia announced, crossing her legs. "We're back with Nikki Rathje who before break, suffered quite the ordeal. Beaten and bloodied by an archangel while trying to defend the life of the fourth angel part of her bond. I think I can speak for a fair amount of our viewers when I say that Raphael's actions were seriously uncalled for."

"Being hit isn't something you can call a good experience," Nikki agreed, "but there was a part of him that felt his actions were justifiable. It's difficult to explain without sounding like I'm defending him, but it was easier to see things from his point of view than feel outraged that he'd been violent towards me."

"Really? Do you normally expect violence to be done to you?"

Coughing back a laugh, Nikki shook her head. "Okay, I didn't mean it that way. It's just that...I was constantly being given praise and attention I didn't think I deserved. When Raphael decided to be honest about his dislike of me, I wasn't surprised by it. He had every right to hate me, considering his circumstances."

"I'm sure his brothers felt differently."

Inhaling slowly, Nikki squirmed in her seat. "Differently is an understatement. Raphael's actions had some very sobering consequences."

Mia studied her for a moment before her eyes widened. "Did Lucifer kill him?"

"Well..."

_"Uh, you're the big brother. You tell Lucifer."_

_The heavy pause was enough to pull Nikki from her state of semi-consciousness. Inconspicuously, she opened her eyes._

_It took a few seconds to soak in that despite her body being supported on a bed, that's not what she was resting on._

_Rather, she was nestled atop something gold, soft, and large enough to extend off the bed. Gabriel's body beside her, resting against a mountain of pillows, confirmed her guess._

_She was nestled upon his wing._

_Initially, she thought to breach the silence and say that she was too heavy, but comfort and his own lack of displeasure, won out._

_Michael was pacing determinedly across the carpet and Gabriel was watching him carefully, leaving Nikki to seek out Balthazar, sitting in a chair on the other side of the room. He stared at her blankly; a fierce contrast to what she'd considered a very expressive face in the short time she'd observed him._

_"It was your duty to make sure Nikki didn't wander," Michael responded coldly. "I will tell Lucifer, but don't think I see you as any less of a coward for placing all the blame on Raphael."_

_"The guy deformed our girlfriend and had every intention of killing her. Priorities, Mikey. He may be our brother, but that was douchey behavior. Plus, you've got at least six angels who'll admit he wanted to swipe the power out of your hands and make everyone pissed off at each other again. That makes him the bad guy."_

_Michael didn't answer right away, jaw set stiffly._

_The quietness grew itchy._

_"I'm not your girlfriend," Nikki inserted when no one spoke for a full minute._

_"Do you prefer lover?" Gabriel offered, picking a strand of hair off her forehead. "How about sugar? Sweetheart? Honey? Baby? Pop tart? Chocolate? On second thought, if you let me call you a food item, I might be tempted to sample you."_

_Pushing up into a sitting position, Nikki grimaced. "As tempting as it is, I was a waitress in high school and after a few years of being called all of the above, the names started to get nauseating."_

_Glancing at Michael, who had thankfully stopped his intense pacing, Nikki attempted a smile. She didn't exactly know what to say to him. It appeared he was once more pissed off at her._

_He nodded slightly at the smile, but otherwise remained stern._

_In response to his impassiveness, she took to admiring his pale wings. __Which, she noticed, were making a grueling attempt to stay folded into his back._

_Upon noticing Nikki's attention on them, Michael cleared his throat, uncomfortable because they weren't doing what he wanted and she was bearing witness to the unruly display._

_Mercifully, her eyes strayed to Balthazar's brown-gray ones. His, curiously enough, were fully extended, but twitching every so often as they tried to mold into the wall behind him._

_In a moment of understanding, Nikki moved to her feet and approached the silent angel. As a result, the gold wing she'd been resting on, brushed needily across her back._

_But, she ignored it for the time being, watching as the physical discomfort grew in Balthazar's face the closer she approached._

_"It's okay," she assured him softly. "You can let them-."_

_Before the consent was fully out of her mouth, his wings flew forward and wrapped around her back, tugging her forward a few inches. He looked thoroughly embarrassed, but the expression began to wane when the tips started exploring her shoulders and back, no longer so frantic._

_"Gods, I've never been so humiliated in my life," he breathed out, knuckles white from the grip he had on the arms of the chair. "Sorry, by the way. They're being repulsively greedy."_

_"It's alright," she accepted. "I think this is one of the few things I don't mind about the bond. All of your wings are beautiful. I'm honored at their attention."_

"It was a cramped room," Nikki threw in. "When Michael saw how responsive I was being to Balthazar's wings, he retracted his own. The place got pretty feathery."

"What prompted this sudden party of feathers?"

"To begin with, Michael tried really hard, especially in the beginning, to not let his wings react when I was near. The first meeting in Montana embarrassed him and he prided himself in having basic control over their actions, being the oldest and all. However, the harder he denied them, the worse the urge got to feel me out. So, there was the repression of what was supposed to naturally happen when he found me, at work," she explained. "Another thing was seeing me receive Balthazar's wings without a fuss. I think it made his wings...sort of...jealous?"

"Wings can get jealous?" Mia inquired with interest.

"Yes, but not on their own. The angel has some influence over the feeling. In a nutshell, seeing me sprawled on Gabriel's wing and then letting Balthazar's feel me out...well, there was definitely a desire to join in on the action, despite his restraint. Michael's weird like that. He gets angry at himself for making his own decisions."

"But, he joined in on the action?"

"A few meaningful brushes, here and there. His third and most basic reason for retracting them was actually to comfort. By what he'd said up to that point and how annoyed he was at Gabriel, I thought maybe he was on Raphael's side. But, that wasn't the case. And his wings really wanted to relay that not only was he glad I was alright, but he was sorry he hadn't been there to protect me. That seems like an impossible thing to figure out, but the bond was at work to help me. Plus, his face...it was conveying something he couldn't quite say because the incident was still fresh and he had many different emotions coursing through him. A lot of them that if indulged, might have ended with him trying to hunt down Raphael again and finishing the job he'd started at the hotel."

"He was attempting to be a brother, a leader, and a boyfriend?" Mia inferred.

"Yes, that's a good way of putting it. One of the three was new to him and another he hadn't dealt with in a long time. I do give him a lot of crap for being an asshole and having a huge ownership complex and being ungodly controlling, but there are times where he juggles his duties really well and I admire him for it."

"Aww."

"Eh," Nikki sighed, rubbing the back of her neck. "Best I go on before we get too sappy. He's still an asshole."

"Roger that."

Nikki grinned reluctantly. "Gabriel and Michael were trying to figure out how to tell Lucifer what had happened without him deciding to find Raphael and kill him. Balthazar's wings were still getting acquainted with me when Michael decided he'd be the one to explain everything. Gabriel was a bit less level headed about what had happened. Even to this day, I can't be sure what he would have done in the hotel were he in Michael's position. He knew if he tried telling Lucifer, his own emotions would cloud the fact that Raphael was still their brother."

"So, despite what had been done to you, Michael wanted Raphael to remain unharmed?"

"More or less. He didn't want him killed, but he'd understand if Lucifer wanted to hit him around. A lot. Actually, he encouraged it."

"And what about Balthazar? He's remained strangely quiet despite being introduced as a "brave idiot"."

"Balthazar...he had his own thoughts going on. I'll get to him later on. But, you are right. Michael and Gabriel, once I'd confirmed Balthazar was part of the bond, sort of carted him off with them. He didn't really get a chance to speak up and say what was on his mind."

"Uh oh. Should we be worried?"

"Well, let's deal with one issue at a time."

_"This is where you live?"_

_Nikki couldn't help but smile at the impressed once over Balthazar gave the Aivazovsky pieces._

_"Do you like them?"_

_"Surprisingly, yes. Not much a fan of Romanticism. Realism is a hit or miss. But, you've picked the one artist I tolerate."_

_He looked at Nikki with a genuine smile, though it lowered far quicker than she'd have liked. In fact, ever since she'd woken up, he'd been mild mannered and tight lipped. Had Michael or Gabriel said something to him while she'd been passed out?_

_Whatever it was preventing him from being the talkative angel he'd been in Raphael's presence, Nikki felt strangely discouraged by it. Michael, Gabriel, and even Lucifer had all been involved in her life when they discovered the bond. Balthazar didn't appear as eager to do so. Was she somehow to blame?_

_"Lucifer!" Michael yelled, eyes focused on the ceiling._

_Upon arrival, the entire house had been dark, save for the sound of footsteps circling upstairs._

_"Sure Daddy dearest made him part of the bond too?" Balthazar ventured, sounding the taddest bit anxious._

_"Oh, cheer up, little bro," Gabriel mentioned, clapping the blond on the shoulder. "Luci's not that bad. You're just going to catch him on one of his really bad days."_

_"You have a little brother now," Nikki commented, with a light smile._

_"I do!" he exclaimed, shaking Balthazar. "Thank Daddy-O. Mikey and Luci were just getting along enough to start teasin-."_

_His sentence was abruptly cut off with Lucifer's appearance._

_Nikki fought a blush crawling up her cheeks at his attire._

"Around the house," Nikki elaborated, "he hardly ever wore clothes. He never felt the need to, you know? Unless it was business with other angels or demons."

"So...he went commando?"

"No! Thank goodness, no. That'd be a little too awkward. Usually, he just walked around in boxers and a t-shirt. Sometimes, just boxers. Though, that was mainly to make me squirm because he knew I'd risk a peek. I guess that's my fault for looking."

"Wow," Mia commended. "The Devil wears boxers. Who would have thought?"

"And hardly shaves," Nikki added. "He had some killer stubble for awhile. But, that's beside the point."

_Unsurprisingly, his first order of business was taking in Balthazar, whose shoulder Gabriel quickly released._

_"I haven't had the pleasure of meeting you, brother."_

_Balthazar didn't say anything for a moment, mouth parted. "R-right. Yeah. Sorry. Erm...hi."_

_Lucifer looked skeptical for a moment, eyeing the younger blond with a tilt of the head._

_"You should have no reason to fear me."_

_"Not scared," he defended. "Just...can't believe you're not-."_

_"-trying to destroy the world? Corrupt humanity? Yes, well, Nikki tends to have that effect on angels, doesn't she?"_

_He threw her a wink and Nikki was momentarily struck by how at ease he seemed. Almost playful._

_Michael too picked up on it, causing him to quickly redirect the conversation. Nobody wanted to be the bearer of bad news, but avoiding the topic would just be prolonging the inevitable._

_"Raphael was there."_

_Lucifer turned to him. "Do I detect displeasure in your voice, Michael? I thought Raphael was fully supporting your plans to battle me."_

_"He was," Michael nodded. "Too much, it would seem. He had plans to continue my former efforts despite the peace."_

_"Always the ambitious brother."_

_"Pft. You consistently played favorites between me and him," Gabriel accused._

_"If you'd like to have your pride soothed, little brother, then yes, I prefer your company. But Raphael has admirable traits as well. I love him just as equally."_

_There was a collective inhale as everyone looked away from the blond archangel._

_"Something else happened?" Lucifer concurred, eyes finding Michael._

_"He was hunting down those who fled heaven and took the side of the humans," he continued. "Balthazar knew the location of one. Raphael and a select few of his garrison, had him cornered, ready to kill him, but...Nikki stumbled in."_

"His whole demeanor changed," Nikki remembered, staring into space. "The muscles in his neck got really taut. He held his head a little higher. There was no sign of that calm he'd had before. In a split second, he'd gone from almost human to silently pissed archangel. And if you ever get the chance to witness that transition...it's a bit scary."

_"Did we not agree that Nikki would be watched at all times?" Lucifer reminded dangerously._

_She wanted to argue the fairness of that, but knew it wasn't the time or place._

_"Most of our family thought I was dead," Gabriel interjected, relieving Michael of some of the pressure. "They sorta wanted to talk to me too. Nikki was having no luck on finding anyone that was part of our bond, so she widened her search."  
><em>

_"I specifically ordered none of the others to so much as look at her lest she spoke to them," Michael cut in._

_"And you're surprised Raphael didn't receive this message?"_

_Michael exhaled deeply before lowering his head._

_"What did he do?"_

_There was no room left for defending Raphael's actions in Lucifer's voice. He emitted the question with the same coldness that possessed his body._

_"Nikki...erm, tried to defend me," Balthazar aided somewhat uncertainly. "She saw my wings and knew that Ralphy was gonna possibly kill me. She got in his way, he called her a...not so nice word, she disagreed, then he sort of...hit her."_

_Lucifer's eyes immediately shot to Nikki, searching her healed face._

_"What did he call you?"_

_She shifted in place, understanding playing coy wouldn't be in her best interest. "Whore."_

_His nod was stiff, one hand tightening into a fist._

_"And how much physical pain did you suffer as a result of his strike?"_

_"It wasn't that severe."_

_"He busted open her cheek and broke her jaw," Gabriel answered._

_The house was dead silent. No one bothered to break the tension, though if there was anyone capable of it, it'd be Michael._

_But he was studying Lucifer intently, ready to respond to whatever action he decided on._

_"I'm to guess you got there in time to keep our brother from killing her?"_

_"Yes."_

_"You, of course, killed him," Lucifer followed up, staring at Michael expectantly._

_"I...assured Raphael that he was to never lay a hand on Nikki again and that if he should attempt to rally a garrison for war once more, I would imprison him."_

_Lucifer chuckled, but it was nothing short of menacing._

_"You've never been good at handling out punishments, have you, brother?"_

_"I didn't think death was required here."_

_"How wrong you are."_

_In an instant, Lucifer was gone._

_"Do you want me to-?"_

_"No," Michael commanded, cutting Gabriel off. "Stay with Nikki. Lucifer is in a mindset where he will not relent easily from his goal."_

_Not a second later and he too had vanished._

"So, Lucifer had every intention of killing Raphael?" Mia confirmed.

"Yes. And he was really pissed off at Michael for not doing it himself."

"But, earlier, Lucifer mentioned that he loved Raphael equal to his other brothers. Was there a bit of conflict he felt at ending his brother's life?"

"I'll definitely get to that," Nikki assured, "because I had the same concerns. If you wouldn't mind, though, I'd like to answer your earlier question of what was up with Balthazar."

"Oh, yes, please do!"

_In the two hours since Michael and Lucifer had departed, Nikki's actions were carried out mechanically. She ate a quick meal without properly tasting as Gabriel showed Balthazar around the house, asked to be left alone with her thoughts in the library, before finally emerging nearly an hour later and taking a shower. All these tasks were performed like she was fueled by batteries._

_After toweling off and slipping into pajamas, she simply couldn't avoid Gabriel anymore. His worry for her was starting to show on his face._

_He ended up cornering her on the way to the den on the east side of the house, Balthazar in tow. The younger angel looked a bit lost. Like he was still trying to remember what had happened to get him into his situation._

_"Alright, Nikki-pie, come with me."_

_"I just want to wait for Michael and Lu-."_

_"We'll all wait together," he suggested, grabbing her hand._

_She followed him with a frown, not realizing until she was actually there, that he'd led her to his room._

_"Menage a trois?" Balthazar questioned, light smirk in place. "While I'm flattered, I've only known you lot a day."_

_"All in good time, big boy," he remarked, jumping onto the bed and making himself comfortable against the wooden headboard. "Alright, come on up, Nikki."_

_He patted his knees for emphasis, but she merely stood there, staring at him._

_"Don't make me snap," he teased, raising one hand._

_"You want me to suck yo-?"_

_"No," Gabriel scolded. "What's with everyone having hanky-panky on the mind? I just wanna hold you."_

"Awwwww."

Nikki didn't bother containing her blush at Mia's beaming features.

_"Promise not to try anything?"_

_She trusted him not to, but it felt right asking anyway._

_"Even if I wanted to, tonight's not the night. I might very well be down a brother by morning. Now, you've got some nasty thoughts going in your head. They're nearly becoming audible. Plop down next to me and tell me about them."_

_Leisurely, Nikki slipped atop the sheets, crawling over to Gabriel's reclined position. After a few seconds of trying to find a comfortable position on wobbly knees (he strayed from tradition and settled on having a waterbed that was ridiculously difficult to balance on) she was resting against his side, one of his arms secured across her shoulders._

_"Wanna cuddle too?" Gabriel asked Balthazar innocently._

_"Nope. Fine right here," he promised, nodding at them before conjuring himself a comfy chair._

_Once they were all relaxed, Gabriel broke the silence._

_"All right, what's on your mind?"_

_She didn't hesitate. He'd been right. There was a lot of clutter going on in her head._

_"I don't want to be the reason Lucifer kills Raphael. He shouldn't have to-it-."_

_"Shh," Gabriel eased, pulling her tighter into his warm body. "Trust me when I say that Raphael deserves everything that's coming to him. He did harm you, so that was strike three, but wanting to disrupt the peace...well, after this many millenniums, that's just not going to fly. We're finally not fighting. You get a taste of that, not having to kill your brothers and sisters...and it reminds everyone of what home used to be like when Daddy-O was still around. You've got nothing to feel ashamed for."_

_Nikki decided not to comment. She certainly still felt shame, even guilt. If she wasn't around, Michael and Lucifer wouldn't have to worry about harming their brother._

_But, she didn't want to come off sounding whiny either._

_"No matter what, we'll always be here for you," he guaranteed._

_She smiled lazily at the affection in his tone, eyes straying to Balthazar._

_The younger angel was making a point to look away._

_"You don't want to be here, do you?" she blurted._

_His head shot to her at the same moment that Gabriel's shot to him._

_"He's part of the bond. Why wouldn't he want to be here?"_

_Ignoring Gabriel's disbelief, Nikki pushed up from her recline, watching Balthazar carefully._

_"I've sensed it since I woke up. You're uncomfortable with being bonded to me."_

_He didn't deny the statement, eyes falling to his entwined fingers._

_A few awkward seconds passed by._

_"Seriously?" Gabriel demanded. "Nikki saved your ass and stood up to my brother for you."_

_Nikki couldn't look at either angel. That feeling of having imposed on them, only increased._

_"The bond isn't a bad thing. It's kinda the key to your happiness. You can't fight it once it's been awoken," he continued._

_"Free will's the trend, innit?" Balthazar defended. "Yeah, I feel a tug toward Nikki, but it doesn't say anywhere that I have to do something about it. I've got places to be. Alcohol to consume. Debauchery to experience. Plus, she's got four others to feel fulfilled with. Pretty sure she can do without me for a while."_

_"You can't-."_

_"It's fine," Nikki interrupted, nodding to herself. "Balthazar has the right to reject this bond. Who are we to try and force him to stay in this house and talk to me?"_

"Did he end up leaving, then?" Mia asked.

"No. Gabriel was still kind of pissed at him and he wanted to wait until Michael and Lucifer were back before he let Balthazar out of his sight."

"Did this aggravate Balthazar?"

"Outwardly, he didn't raise a fuss, but that was only because he was worried about what the archangels would do if he defected. He stayed put, but I could tell he had more to say about being dragged into something he wasn't prepared for."

"It sounds like everything was kind of against you."

"No kidding. It only got worse when Michael and Lucifer finally got back."

_Since Balthazar's revelation, the air was laced with an underlying dissidence. Nikki couldn't stay comfy, even with Gabriel's arm wrapped around her._

_So, after a half hour, she decided to wander around the house. There wasn't a destination in mind. Just a desire to free herself from the guilt aggressively building in the pit of her stomach._

_Although she told Gabriel to hang tight, he still followed her, not saying anything. His concern was growing and she wondered if she was just being that obvious or if maybe the bond had something to do with it._

_Balthazar followed behind the archangel, saying very little._

_They converged back in the kitchen just in time to watch Michael and Lucifer appear; the latter angel marked with blood stains on his t-shirt and down to his exposed legs._

_Nikki froze._

_"This can't be good," Gabriel mumbled from behind her._

_Lucifer wiped at his blood speckled face, blue eyes settling on Nikki. "Next time you decide to piss off one of my brothers, don't expect me to defend you."_

_It was the first time he'd ever directed pure animosity at her through his voice. Though, the anger was quickly catching up in his features._

_"Lu-."_

_"No," he ignored, pushing Michael's hand off him. "How is it we got stuck with a human who can't do what they're told? Who feels the need to procure anger from beings far more powerful than her?"_

_Swallowing tightly, Nikki took a step back._

_"You are a stupid human," Lucifer spat with a deceivingly quiet tone, "and if you don't come to learn your place, not even this bond will stop me from showing it to you."_

"Holy crap," Mia took in. "He was angry at you?"

"Yes. He didn't feel good about having to harm his brother and it was because of me that he had to in the first place. But, he couldn't just leave Raphael's actions unpunished. He had a lot going on in his head. And...I understood it. It's exactly what I'd been fearing when Gabriel told me everything was going to be alright."

_"Hey, back off," Gabriel argued. "Nikki didn't ask to be hit."_

_"Challenging him practically invited such a display," Lucifer maintained._

_"Dude, she challenged you and Mikey and you didn't decide to rearrange her face."_

_"Perhaps she shouldn't have challenged us to begin with."_

_"Stop," Michael interjected, dark brows furrowed. "What's done is done."_

_"Is Raphael dead?" Balthazar queried._

_Lucifer and Michael traded a long, impassive look. "He is still alive, though the condition Lucifer left his vessel in...leaves much to be desired."_

_Nikki paled at the thought of what that condition could be._

_"Great," Balthazar announced. "Now that that's all cleared up, I'll be going."_

_"Where?" Michael requested strictly._

_"Anywhere but here. You gents obviously got some issues to work out and-."_

_"-you are part of the bond. There is no alternative path for you."_

_"Right, see, much as I like Nikki, I also enjoy doing whatever the hell I want too. You boys stopped your plans, so why can't I pursue mine?"_

_"It's your duty."_

_"No, it's your duty. You're the ultimate duty boy. Me? I was born with hedonism in my blood."_

"They sort of went back and forth for a little while," Nikki recalled. "Michael getting gradually angrier by Balthazar's decision to leave. It got really heated when he looked to Lucifer and Gabriel for support."

_"Why not let him leave?" Lucifer disregarded._

_"Oh, stop being such a drama queen," Gabriel complained. "You're only pissed because you finally realize what you'd be willing to do for a human."_

"That brought back the argument about Raphael," she revealed, expelling a deep breath. "Then Lucifer got angry again and Gabriel tried defending me while Balthazar was making his case to Michael who was getting fed up with his disobedience. The entire kitchen got hectic and I sort of tip toed away, knowing they were too into their arguments to notice."

"That's rough," Mia conveyed gently. "It sounds like you felt responsible for their disagreements."

"How could I not? Balthazar wanted nothing to do with me, Michael was using me to guilt trip Balthazar into staying, Lucifer was pissed at me for Raphael and Gabriel started bringing up former childhood incidents that made them argue harder. It was a mess and I was responsible for all of it. That's not me trying to be pessimistic, either. Quite literally, if I'd never entered their lives, they wouldn't be facing the difficulties they were."

"But you saved the world in doing so!"

She frowned at that. "It didn't feel like it."

_Nikki didn't realize how far away from the house she'd wandered until trees were surrounding her. And not just a few of them either. She made it deep into the woods after at least a two mile hike over the hills._

_Her skin was feeling hot, but her thoughts were cold._

_Without much thought, she picked a random tree and slumped down against it. Evening had set in and the cool air allowed her to shuffle through what she was feeling._

_Guilt, primarily. She never had any intention of breaking up their relationships._

_Disappointment. When had her life spiraled out of control so fast? A few months ago, she was getting ready for a career altering internship and nearly had an associates in paralegal studies. She was going places without her parents' help._

_Now, she was contained to a house with four angel. Her future stagnant and indeterminable. It was frustrating how easily she'd adapted to the role. Worse that her presence was making things worse._

"Sometimes," Nikki expressed with an embarrassed smile, "I can be really unpleasant to myself."

_"Please don't tell me you're going to cry."_

_Jolting at the voice, Nikki rapidly glanced around her scenery for a body._

_It took a while, but eventually, she was able to make out a tall, suited woman resting against a tree, shadows making a notable effort at keeping her concealed._

_"Who are you?"_

_The woman sauntered forward, back straight and head held high._

_"How easily you forget being struck by my hand."_

_Nikki's lips parted in surprise."A-Raphael?"_

_He glanced down at himself, as if he didn't know what to say about the transition from male body to female. "As you can tell, Lucifer was exceedingly thorough in his punishment. There isn't much of my former vessel left to go back to."_

_Nikki watched him warily (or would it be her now?), unsure of how to react._

_"I'm not here to harm you," Raphael promised, though there was no sign of pleasantness at the declaration. "This is merely insurance. Michael and Lucifer demanded I apologize to you for my actions, should I continue wanting to live."_

_"You don't have to."_

_"Unfortunately, I do. I am sorry for my treatment of you in the hotel."_

_"Okay."_

_They both understood it wasn't genuine, but Nikki knew enough not to look a gift horse in the mouth._

_"I don't like you."_

_This part was definitely genuine._

_"You impair Michael's judgment and have made Lucifer dependent on you. More than you have yet to realize," Raphael divulged. "But you make them uncommonly content. I suppose that is the up side."_

_Nikki stayed silent, letting the words sink in before she reacted to them._

_"Tell them I've done as they ordered."_

_"Okay."_

_He studied her for a few seconds before disappearing._

"Well, he apologized to you. That's a plus."

"It is," Nikki agreed. "The next time I met Raphael, he didn't hate me nearly as much. And even if Lucifer and Michael forced him to do it, I still felt a little better. At least someone besides Gabriel didn't hate me."

"Oh, I doubt any of them could stay angry at you for too long. Especially when they realize you're not the source of their troubles."

"Luckily, you're right about that."

_She wasn't sure how long she stayed seated against the tree, only that it was long enough to feel the wind pick up. And while Nikki wasn't yet cold, she knew staying immobile in the same spot would quickly get her there._

_"You're extremely difficult to find, you know that?"_

_Perking up at Balthazar's voice, Nikki pushed up into a standing position._

_"Even with the bond, I can't detect you," he continued. "Which isn't something I like."_

_"Why would that be important?"_

_He stopped in front of her, relaxed enough to have both wings protracted behind him._

_"Yeah, sorry bout that," he apologized, scratching the back of his head as his eyes searched her. "If I sounded like I didn't give care about you, that's not true."_

_"You don't have to," she insisted. "I understand being thrown into this and not having a say in the matter. Believe me, I understand. That's why if you really want to leave, you can. I'll make them see it's not a big deal. In fact, I'll argue that it's a burden."_

_Balthazar shook his head._

_"It makes it worse that you're nice. Humans aren't supposed to be nice," he joked, sobering up a few seconds later. "Look, what's got me reluctant isn't just all the plans I had and places I wanted to see. I realize you could come with me to do that. It's how bleedin' erratic me and the feathers feel when you're around."_

_As if to emphasize his point, both wings soared forward and slipped themselves behind her back, effectively cocooning her from the cool breeze._

_"See?" he pointed out, waving a hand at them in aggravation. "Also, don't know if the big three had this issue, but I don't seem to want to share you with anyone. That sort of freaks me out. This...instinctual devotion."_

_Nikki closed the remaining distance between them._

_In response to knowing she'd be near, his wings retreated into his back._

_"So...you have a lot of strong feelings that you don't know what to do with?"_

_"As unlikely as it sounds, yeah," he agreed. "Don't worry, I'll stay at the house. That bit isn't excruciating and you've got lovely taste, so I know I'll never be lacking someone to chat with about the finer human things. But, I can't say I'll know what do with...the inside stuff."_

_"Your feelings?" Nikki clarified, somewhat amused by his reluctance to acknowledge them._

_"That," he nodded. "Not you at all. And I feel bad for making you leave."_

_She wasn't sure if it was wise to initiate it, but after a quick scan of his indecisive features, she settled on throwing caution to the wind._

_Wordlessly, she slung an arm around his back, bringing his form to her. After a confused second, he hugged her back._

_Tight._

_"You were supposed to tell us that you'd found her."_

_They broke apart at Michael's steely tone._

_"Found her," Balthazar motioned._

_"You can't just-."_

_"Oh, cheer up, Mikey," Gabriel suggested, slipping to his brother's side. "I think the two love birds needed their alone time."_

_Shaking his head, Michael slowly let his wings unfurl a little ways from his back. Nikki got the memo that he was frustrated._

_"We need to insert a part of our graces into her sigil as soon as possible."_

"The mark you showed us at the beginning of the interview," Mia recalled.

"Yep. Eventually, they would put bits of their grace inside it. Which sounds naughty, doesn't it?"

"Well, I guess that depends on whether the experience was pleasurable."

"From the way Michael made it sound, I thought it'd be terrifying. But he can make a day at the beach sound as if it was going to be a torture session in hell."

_"I don't want you to insert anything into me."_

_Unsurprisingly, Michael didn't back down._

_"If you plan to run away again, we need to know where you a-."_

_Gabriel smacked him on the back of the head._

_"You do get that our arguing is what drove her away, right?"  
><em>

_Michael rubbed at the bruised spot sheepishly._

_"I apologize," he offered. "We were unsympathetic to your feelings. Feel free to speak up. I...don't enjoy not knowing where you are or that I'm somehow responsible for your desire to leave."_

_The borderline vulnerability in his voice made Nikki nod with a quick smile._

_"I'm sorry too, sweetums," Gabriel provided. "I'm supposed to be the brother above all the fighting-."_

_Michael threw him an annoyed glare._

_"-but I got into it too. Next time, just hit us all. We were behaving like idiots."_

_"I'll most likely take you up on that offer," Nikki assured._

_"This is getting violently sappy," Balthazar mentioned._

_"Get used to it," the younger archangel concluded. "Oh, by the way, Luci offers his condolences as well. He's back at the house, trying to work out how the hell he managed to fall in love with a human so fast. He might be a bit moody for a few days, but he'll come around."_

"He...was in love with you?"

"Um...he-."

"We'll be back after the break!"

* * *

><p><strong>Let me know your thoughts in a review!<strong>


	8. Chapter 8

**I apologize for how long it's taken to update. I had a lot of things to work out both in my personal life and with this story. I'm going on this editing spree where each chapter is being re-uploaded because of mistakes and inconsistencies I made. It's not mandatory, but if you want, feel free in the coming days to reread the story. I've changed some minor things and while they are minor, I never know what detail a reader can pick up on and then become confused because it's changed. Also, I nearly suffered a breakdown because the outline for this chapter got lost somewhere and I couldn't find it. I'm a very disorganized person in general so having an outline for me is a big deal. Still can't find it, so I tried to write the best from what I could remember. Besides all that, I just want to thank everyone who took the time to review the last chapter. I can't begin to explain how surprised and happy I am that you've all taken to this story the way you have. I love writing for you guys and I just want to let you know how much I appreciate whatever comments you drop off. It means a lot to me. Sorry if this isn't the best chapter, but I hope you enjoy regardless.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 8 - Interview Part #7 - It's a Back Breakin' Sorta Love<strong>

"Can you believe it?" Audrey marveled with a shake of the head. "Lucifer in love. Sounds like a Lifetime movie."

"Lifetime movie?" Vincent inquired.

"You don't want to know," Andre interjected quickly.

"Ah, well, I think it's endearing."

Vera glared at Vincent, but didn't say anything.

"It shows anyone can fall in love," Alex mentioned.

"Nearly anyone," Kolab corrected.

"God, do you listen to yourselves?" Vera snapped, upper lip curled back in distaste. "Lucifer doesn't feel love. He's obviously using her to-."

She paused, mouth parted.

"Yes?" Kolab inquired with a confident smirk. "Using her for what?"

There was an awkward silence where each individual focused on something different backstage.

"I don't understand," Vera spoke slowly, "why her. She isn't special. She's too prideful and obviously has abandonment issues."

"Hmm," Kolab mulled, "and that sounds absolutely nothing like Lucifer."

"My, I've never considered that," Vincent acknowledged. "How abruptly similar they are."

"Whose side are you even on?" the female demon sneered. "You bring this filthy human freak into a meeting after listening to her talk without ripping out her guts! When the hell did you get so fucking soft?"

"I'm not soft," Kolab warned, taking a step toward her. "I merely decided that my own displeasure was less important than SPN becoming a syndicated network. If there is anything I hate more than humans, it's having all my hard work be obliterated. Before you accuse me of abandoning my nature, take a look at why you are angry in the first place. You will see it has nothing to do with me. And I only give you this warning because you are a friend, Vera. Accuse me of going soft again and I will string you up by your intestines."

The silence had transitioned from awkward to full out hostile.

"Please," Alex inserted calmly, "if there are issues to be sorted, maybe another room or another time might be better."

"Nothing to sort. Isn't that right, Vera?"

Her muteness was steely, but eventually, she nodded.

"And I thought I had it bad with other witches," Audrey whispered to Andre.

"I don't think we nearly have it as bad as demons," he mumbled back. "Think about it. They were human once."

"Yeah, and they-."

"If you wish to keep your tongues," Vera threatened, "I would suggest you shut up."

The duo nodded, eyes focused back on the stage.

"That's my girl," Kolab complimented, snaking an arm around the pissed off demon.

"And we're back!" Mia announced. "I think what shocked us most before break was Gabriel's comment regarding Lucifer. Tell me, was there any truth to him being in love with you?"

Nikki inhaled slowly.

"I don't know if I can answer that. I mean, he's certainly done things that would indicate he did, but he's kind of...well, Satan, you know. It was hard for me to completely accept he cared about me as much as Gabriel, and even Raphael, said he did."

"I don't think anyone blames you for being cautious. Gabriel mentioned that the next few days would be a bit rough. Were they?"

"That would depend on which angel I was with," she answered thoughtfully. "I found out that Balthazar liked to read just as much as I did, so he and I spent a lot of time in the library. So much time that Gabriel would take to interrupting us because he felt I was devoting too much attention to him. That was actually more funny than worrying. Because of the weird atmosphere in the house, Gabriel kept trying to cheer me up by playing pranks on Michael. Though, that didn't always go over so well."

"Oh, please, go on," Mia insisted.

"Well, Gabriel and I thought it would be funny - and yes, I was a part of it too - if he stole all of Michael's clothes and made it so he couldn't conjure any more. I'm not sure how he was able to make that possible, but it worked. The next thing I knew, I see a naked Michael sprinting after Gabriel and tackling him into the pool-"

"-wait, there was a pool?"

"The pool area was a short lived experiment," Nikki relayed quickly, a blush staining her cheeks. "None of the angels understood the concept of swimming trunks. Balthazar called them unnecessary underwear. So, they, uhm...would-."

"-swim naked?" Mia inserted excitedly.

"Yeah," she answered with a nervous laugh. "It was an eye opening experience, to say the least. But I appreciated what Gabriel was trying to do. Even if he suffered Michael's wrath as a result. Michael, over the next few days, actually said very little to me. I got the impression that he was debating something big. It was a bit frustrating when he'd stare at me, but never say anything."

"What was he debating?"

"Whether their graces should be inserted into the sigil on my skin even though the fifth angel who was a part of the bond, hadn't yet been found. It bothered him more than he let on that I managed to slip away from them so easily. Remember, he's a bit of a control freak."

"Yes," Mia agreed, "sounds like it. What did he end up deciding?"

"That finding the fifth angel was more important. But I'd never have been able to tell. Michael's vessel has very, very intense eyebrows. Combined with the fact that he never blinked and being stared at got to be really, really awkward. Though, not as awkward as the situation with Lucifer. After the fight, he stayed away from me."

"Seriously? But he apologized!"

"Gabriel apologized _for_ him," Nikki corrected. "After five days of not seeing or hearing from him, it was easy to assume that he was still pissed off at me. And his absence felt odd. I mean a part of me wanted him to go to hell. Or, heaven, maybe. Whichever would be the bigger insult. He was acting like a child. But another part missed his presence. More than I thought I would, at least. Unconsciously, I got used to him being around. He was the first angel I'd met. In that way alone, we were connected. But, for the five days after the fight, he refused to be around me."

"Did any of the other angels comment on his absence?"

"That's what amped up that awkwardness. He was like the elephant in the room no one was willing to talk about. Gabriel really hoped he'd come around and stop being so petulant, but after the fifth day, I could tell he was getting annoyed. Maybe a little bit at both of us because we were so unwilling to break the silence."

"That sounds severely uncomfortable. What finally knocked you guys out of your funk?"

Nikki stifled a groan, shaking her head.

"It was a poorly executed ambush. I knew what was happening the moment they each came up with a convenient excuse," she explained. "Well, okay, maybe their excuses were actually sound. We got to day six and there was still a silent stalemate at work. Michael announced that he was taking a trip to heaven. He was going to try to create a list of all the names that hadn't appeared at the get together inside the hotel. More searching for that elusive fifth angel. Balthazar and Gabriel, not even a second later, mentioned they had some errands to run. They got along with each other remarkably well, by the way. I don't think I'd ever laughed so hard at some of the jokes they told. Really raunchy, but funny. It was good for Gabriel to have a brother who wouldn't get so moody at his teasing. Anyway, they all made it clear that they were out of service. If I needed anything, I'd have to talk to Lucifer. Before I could question any of them, they were gone and I was, conveniently, alone in the house with my favorite archangel."

"Could they have left a bigger clue?"

"Exactly!" Nikki agreed. "I knew what they wanted to come out of it and I refused to be the one to grovel at his feet for forgiveness. So, I kept to myself. It was pouring rain outside and for the most part, I just sat in the library and listened to the storm. I needed to relax in general. While I was happy over the course of those six days, I also couldn't help but feel exhausted. Physically, that is. I didn't think I did anything too grueling, but my spine would get these spurts of stiffness, followed by really, really bad backaches. I actually had these symptoms for the past year, but attributed it to stress from college. It was only when I was more relaxed than I'd ever been in my life and the aches still came, that I got a little anxious."

"Was it anything serious?" Mia inquired worriedly.

"It was far more serious than I realized. After a few hours, I decided to walk back to my room. But, by this point, the pressure was painful. Painful enough that I stopped in the middle of the hallway and bit down on the inside of my cheek so I didn't scream."

"Would this have anything to do with the surgery you mentioned getting when you were younger?"

"Yes. Good call," Nikki complimented. "I didn't know this until later on, but the disk in my spine, over time, had deteriorated due to the way the fusion surgery on my spine was performed. Neither of my parents bothered to do a background check on the surgeon who operated on me. If they would've, they'd have known he'd been in hot water before because of botched operations and faced a malpractice suit a few years earlier."

"Oh my God."

"They didn't know," Nikki defended quickly.

"Because they were busy partying half way around the world! I know you feel the need to be loyal to them because they're your parents, but Nikki, they sound like terrible people. Again, I know I'm biased in saying this, but no parent leaves their child alone during such a serious and scary part of their lives. You deserved better."

For a moment, Nikki remained silent, eyes glued to her lap.

"I'm sorry," Mia added. "That was unprofessional of me to say."

"I understand where you're coming from."

A few seconds passed by in which neither interviewer or interviewee said anything. Behind the camera, Brock wasn't sure who to pan the camera on.

"I'm guessing, after the pain started to get unbearable, you went to Lucifer for help?" Mia provided, redirecting the topic.

Nikki chuckled lightly.

"This is the same girl who sold her soul to a crossroads demon because she refused to be bonded to five angels. I'm afraid it wasn't that easy to convince myself I needed his help. I managed to get to my room and for an hour, rode out the pain. I might have considered going to him if I had known I'd suffered significant nerve damage. Or maybe not. I don't know. It was a back and forth battle of pros and cons."

_The sheets were absorbing Nikki's tears as another spurt of pain ripped through her back. That time, she hadn't moved an inch._

_"Great," she mumbled raggedly._

_Her survival instinct was screaming at her to go find Lucifer. Or at least call him. No matter what sort of unresolved awkwardness remained, he wouldn't be so prideful as to ignore the fact that she was in pain._

_And yet, her brain was dead set on remembering how angry he'd been at her six days ago. How she was nothing but a pathetic human to him. Why would he even consider helping her when he didn't see her as nothing more than an inconvenience? He had to harm his brother because of her. He was forced to acknowledge that she meant something to him._

_As screwed up as it was, Nikki was willing to let herself be seen as nothing in his eyes so long as he didn't have to continue to struggle over what he was feeling._

_That, for some reason or other, added to the pain. And suddenly, the tears falling weren't just purely a physical response._

"I'm torn," Mia stated soberly. "On one hand, he really should be the one to apologize to you first. It's awful that you had to feel so undeserving and expendable. On the other hand, I don't want you to suffer any longer."

"I think I was willing to pass out from the pain rather than call for him. In a way, I didn't realize how perfect we were for each other until that moment. Stubborn until the end."

"What happened next?"

"A miracle," Nikki revealed. "He broke the stalemate."

_"I'm unaccustomed to making apologies," he began._

_Nikki's eyes shot open. Had she the strength, she would have rolled over to look at him instead of making him talk to her back._

_"I've never had to apologize for anything in my life. There is nothing I've felt guilt for."_

_She didn't have a difficult time believing that._

_"This is different. So, I hope, in time, you are willing to look past what I said out of anger."_

_When he didn't elaborate, Nikki understood that was as guilty as he'd allow himself to feel._

_"I forgive you," she answered softly, staring at the wall._

_"That easily? I expected more of an argument from you."_

_Nikki opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She didn't know what to say._

_Not a second later and a violent spasm rocked her spine. The scream she wanted to emit came out as a choked sob. She tried to muffle it so he wouldn't hear, but the effort was useless. Lucifer was standing on the other side of her bed before she could blink._

_For a moment, Nikki believed she caught him in a rare state of shock. He probably didn't expect to see the tears drying on her face or uncontrollable tremble in her bottom lip. It made a warmness stir in her chest to know he cared enough to be shocked, even if her brain was questioning his authenticity._

_"Why did you not inform me sooner?"_

_Suddenly, he looked angry all over again._

_"It doesn't matter," she tried to explain with a shaky voice. "I deserve this, don't I? You had to hurt Raphael. It's only right that I ache too."_

_Lucifer reached out to touch her, but with the hand not trapped beneath her body, Nikki pushed his arm away. _

_"Stop being difficult," he warned._

_"Let me suffer. You don't care."_

_Catching her hand, Lucifer transferred it to his opposite one. With a gentleness she didn't think him capable of, he placed his fingers over her cheek. What prevented her from arguing was his eyes. She couldn't explain what she saw in them, only that it briefly stole the oxygen from her lungs. _

"Lucifer isn't the kind of being to tell others he loves them," Nikki maintained. "His family is probably one of the only exceptions to that rule. When you asked me if there was any truth to him loving me...if I focused only on the amount of times he'd verbally said it, than the answer might be a lukewarm yes. Overall, he found it unnecessary to tell me. But, his actions and facial expressions and what he shows when he thinks no one is looking...that's where you figure out the answer to that question. He was mad at me for not telling him I was in pain. That was obvious in his posture. But in his eyes...as sappy as this is going to sound...I pretty much knew how he felt about me."

"Wow," Mia marveled. "You must have seen something pretty powerful."

"I'm glad I caught it," she agreed. "Otherwise, I would have been a lot more angry at what he did next."

_"This is seriously unnecessary," Nikki complained._

_Lucifer only brought her tighter into his chest, arms refusing to budge._

_"I'm beginning to understand why Michael enjoys having you in his constant sight. If you ever try to hide your pain from me again, I will ensure that each night, Michael and I will occupy your bed."_

_"Was that supposed to sound threatening?" she asked, amazed and worried that the thought didn't bother her as much as it should._

_"What a dirty mind my human has," he mused. "Unfortunately, it will be less about pleasure and more as your unwavering babysitters. Even your showers will have to be monitored."_

_Nikki's shiver made Lucifer smirk into her hair. As an afterthought, his left wing gently curled over her._

"Wait, so he-?"

"Healed me? Yes," Nikki confirmed. "Got into bed behind me and made sure I couldn't escape his grasp even if I had to go pee? Also yes. As aggravating as it was, I knew he did it because he felt...I mean, I don't want to destroy his reputation. When provoked, Lucifer is by far the scariest person I've ever seen. But he's also very protective should the occasion call for it. That was now two times that he wasn't around when I was in pain. He was willing to swallow a lot of his pride to apologize and look after me."

Vera scoffed, turning away from the stage.

A second later and she disappeared.

"I bet Michael, Gabriel, and Balthazar were pleased with what they came home to," Mia eagerly surmised.

"Heck yes. Apparently, Gabriel made a bet that Lucifer and I would make up. He won gloating rights for the next week."

"What did they say about the scare with your spine?"

"Well...we didn't exactly tell them," Nikki confessed, shifting in her seat. "Gabriel wanted to know all the details of who broke first, but Lucifer said it didn't matter and that I accepted his apology. It wasn't that he didn't want to tell them. Actually, this scare prompted him to sort of do these monthly scans with his grace. Just to make sure some part of me wasn't randomly deteriorating without his or my knowledge. What prevented him from saying anything was how vulnerable we both let ourselves be. I cried in front of him and he reacted. It was a moment we wanted to keep to ourselves."

"Completely understandable," Mia accepted. "Though, I guess now they know."

Glancing at the camera, Nikki forced on a smile. This wouldn't be something any of them, Michael specifically, would be happy about being left in the dark with.

"That's true. Though, I think one of the reasons the topic wasn't pursued more thoroughly is because Gabriel and Balthazar actually were running an errand."

"Angels run errands?"

"Sounds like a Lifetime move, doesn't it?"

Backstage, Andre and Audrey bumped fists.

"Well," Mia debated, "it depends on what they were doing the whole day."

"They were..."

_She was confused when Gabriel handed her a leash. Out of nowhere, Michael released a quiet laugh. He'd been in heaven all day and hadn't said much, but apparently, picked up on what was happening quicker than she did._

_Her eyes widened when Balthazar returned to the den with a large, ginger tabby cradled awkwardly against his chest._

_"Bastard sheds like crazy. But, he's affectionate."_

_Nikki couldn't contain her excited laugh as she briskly jogged over to the angel. Balthazar was having a difficult time holding the feline, possibly because he didn't quite know how to hold him. She nearly lost it when the tabby kept smacking the blonde in the face with his tail, a hiss escaping his jaws._

_"C'mere, baby."_

_She accepted the tabby from Balthazar, who frowned at all the orange fur clinging to his t-shirt._

_"Oh, you are a gorgeous boy, aren't you?"_

_Her fingers tenderly rubbed over his ears, pleased when he purred contentedly._

_"Thank you!" she exclaimed, looking between the two angels. "This was really, really thoughtful of you guys. And don't worry, I'll make sure he doesn't bother you too much."_

_Glancing down at her furry friend, Nikki asked, "You don't mind sleeping with me, do you?"_

_She knew cats could be very, very selfish. And not want anything to do with humans until said human was conveniently occupied. Keeping the tabby in her room might be a problem._

_But based on how calm this one was so far, she had a good feeling her nights would be a little less lonely. Worse comes to worse, she could always use him as her therapist like Mr. Miyagi was. _

_Huh. Who would have thought that would be a constant in the transition from her old life to her new one? She still considered cats to be her therapist._

_"You're not actually going to sleep with him, are you?" Gabriel questioned, brows furrowed in confusion._

_"If he wants a place in my bed, then yeah, why not?"_

_Each angel made their own face at the comment._

_"Barbaric," Michael inserted._

_"Humans share the bed with their pets all the time," Nikki defended. "There is nothing wrong with that."_

_She continued rubbing the tabby beneath his ears, smiling when he pushed his head into her palm._

_"On second thought," Gabriel mentioned, "we probably should have gotten her something less adorable."_

"We'll be back after the break!"

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><p><strong>Eh, I feel like that all could have been written better and that I'm leaving out something important. Guess I'll never know *rocks back and forth in the fetal position*. Let me know your thoughts in a review!<strong>


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